


The Only Friends I Need

by electribunny



Series: Sweet as Maple (Mapleport AU) [1]
Category: Minecraft (Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Magic, Alternate Universe - Modern with Magic, Angst with a Happy Ending, Dadza, Domestic Fluff, Found Family, Gen, Growing Up, Other Additional Tags May Be Added, They/Them pronouns for Eret, Time Skips, Underage Drinking, Underage Smoking, sleepy bois inc - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-04
Updated: 2021-03-05
Packaged: 2021-03-10 05:41:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 14
Words: 32,489
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27869357
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/electribunny/pseuds/electribunny
Summary: The nearby town. Phil didn’t know what it was called, but it was the first sign of civilization in a while, and honestly, he just needed a few days. The kids were cold, he was cold, and they were all more than a little hungry. Even if they couldn’t find anywhere to stay, they could probably count on an alleyway and a soup kitchen just to get them by until they had to leave again.---Homeless and on the run, Phil and his 3 young sons finally find safety in the small town of South Mapleport. But can their idyllic haven keep them protected forever?Companion Piece to "This Dream isn't Feeling Sweet"
Relationships: Dave | Technoblade & Wilbur Soot & TommyInnit & Phil Watson, Eret & Floris | Fundy & Niki | Nihachu & Toby Smith | Tubbo, Eret & Niki | Nihachu & Toby Smith | Tubbo, Niki | Nihachu & Wilbur Soot, Toby Smith | Tubbo & TommyInnit
Series: Sweet as Maple (Mapleport AU) [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2040369
Comments: 181
Kudos: 566





	1. Just Need Some Company Now

**Author's Note:**

> WOOHOOO!! heya, hi, its bee!! i'm super fucking pumped to be posting the first chapter for this, if you couldn't tell. this is an AU that my very good friend noir and I have made up together, titled the Mapleport AU! it's a super cool modern with magic au, and I think you all are going to love it!! i know I do!! we both have split the responsibilities of creating the au pretty evenly, and while I'm the one doing the actual writing, he's put a lot of work into this as well, and it's as much his au as it is mine, so make sure to send him some love!! this wouldn't be a thing without his input, note keeping, and beta reading. 
> 
> the fic title is from ribs by lorde. the chapter title is from comfort crowd by Conan gray. series title is from maple by hayley kiyoko. 
> 
> without further ado, enjoy the reading!
> 
> my main Tumblr: electribunny  
> my mineblr: vanilla-minecraft  
> my twitter: electribunny  
> noirs Tumblr: h0n04rys3n10r  
> noirs twitter: h0n04rys3n10r

_ Fuck, it’s cold.  _ Phil thought to himself, adjusting his wings to try and shield himself from the snow a little better. The 17-year-old would normally never have his wings so visible, but he had a few good reasons for risking it. 

The first reason was gripping his left hand as they trudged ahead. Phil had shoved his favorite white and green hat over Techno’s head before they left, and there it sat, over his waist-length brown hair. The hand that wasn’t gripping Phil’s was holding his jacket closed. Phil smiled down at him before diverting his attention. 

The second reason was on his right, Phil’s hand gentle on his back, guiding him. Wilbur’s face was focused so intently on the little bundle of blankets in his arms that Phil couldn’t help but giggle softly. He took baby holding duty very seriously. 

Speaking of baby holding duty, his third reason was propped up on Wilbur’s hip, curled in his brother’s embrace. A particularly big gust of wind blew by, and Tommy cried out, huddling closer to Wilbur. In response, Will pulled off his toque and placed it over Tommy’s blonde locks. He opened up his coat and placed Tommy inside, obviously trying to warm him up. 

“It’s okay Toms.” He whispered, leaning forward to press a soft kiss to the baby’s forehead. He began singing a soft lullaby to him. At the noise, Techno leaned forward to look past Phil and toward his brothers. 

“Tommy’s okay Techno, just a little cold.” Phil squeezed his oldest’s hand in what he hoped was a comforting move. The preteen looked satisfied at that and returned his gaze to the nearby town. 

The nearby town. Phil didn’t know what it was called, but it was the first sign of civilization in a while, and honestly, he just needed a few days. The kids were cold, he was cold, and they were all more than a little hungry. Even if they couldn’t find anywhere to stay, they could probably count on an alleyway and a soup kitchen just to get them by until they had to leave again. 

Phil didn’t know where they were going, or when they were stopping. He’d stop when it was safe to stop. 

Speaking of safety, he grimaced as the town approached closer. It was a blessing and a curse. A blessing, because it meant they could finally rest for the night, but a curse because it meant they could no longer depend on Phil’s wings to shield them from the snow. 

“Sorry boys,” Phil said, stopping. “I’ve already risked it too much.” Techno nodded in understanding as he let go of the older’s hand. Phil grabbed his coat from his backpack, tucking in his wings, and pulling the long fabric over his shoulders. Without his wings to protect them, the snow immediately blew into his face. Tommy snuggled deeper into Will’s chest. Wilbur flinched, ducking his head. Techno tried to act unaffected, but his hand flew up to Phil’s hat, keeping it from blowing away in the wind. Phil slid his pack onto his back again, and they continued walking. 

Phil wished he still had the car. It would’ve made things a hell of a lot easier. He shook his head and walked a little faster. Without his wings out, he was able to guide them toward the highway. He sighed in relief as his feet hit the paved road, no longer submerged in the snow. Eventually, they made it into the town, and with the streetlights to guide them and the houses breaking up the wind, the storm was much quieter. When he glanced over to Wilbur, Tommy was asleep in his arms. 

“Hey, what are you guys doing outside!? It’s late! And storming!” A voice called, and Phil whipped his head over. A rather tall teenager stood in the doorway of one of the houses, calling to them. 

“We’re homeless!” Wilbur responded. Rehearsed. Just like Phil taught him to. Phil turned to the boy and pretended to scold him. 

“I’m so sorry about him! You know, kids! We were just looking for a dry place to spend the night! Sorry for the bother!” 

“No, come in! You won’t find anywhere safe to stay in this weather.” The teenager called back, and Phil smiled. Bingo. He led the kids toward the house, and up the porch steps. He stopped a little when he saw the person beckoning them in. They were wearing sunglasses, even though it was the dead of night. On top of that, they couldn’t have been older than fifteen. Phil strengthened his grip on Wilbur’s shoulder, wary. 

As soon as they were inside, the kid turned and locked three separate locks on the door. They then whipped around to face Phil. 

“Are you fucking stupid? Having your wings out so close to a town like this? You’re lucky it’s a snowstorm, anyone with normal vision probably wouldn’t have seen you. But still, you gotta be careful”! They scolded, taking off their sunglasses, to reveal that their eyes were pure white. Phil relaxed. This person was like them. 

“I know, I know. But listen, I had to protect them somehow, they would’ve frozen to death.” Phil gestured to the three boys. At this, the person visibly softened. 

“Yeah. I get it. Totally understand. I’m Eret, it’s nice to meet you.” 

“Phil.” Phil smiled, shaking their hand. Tommy began babbling to no one in particular, obviously woken up by the commotion. 

“Oh, and who are you?” Eret asked, leaning down to poke Tommy’s nose with a smile. 

“That’s Tommy!” Wilbur proudly exclaimed. “He’s only one! But he’s gonna be two soon! And my name is Wilbur, and I’m 8! That’s Techno. He doesn’t talk much.” 

“And how old are you, Techno?” 

“11,” Techno muttered, ever wary of new people. 

“How old are you, Mr. Eret?” Wilbur asked. 

“I’m 14.” They smiled in response. 

“Fourteen’s a little young to be living by yourself,” Phil said. 

“I doubt you’re much older. Besides, I’m not by myself. I’ve got siblings that live here too. They're just asleep.” 

“Fair enough,” Phil responded. 

“Anyway, are you guys hungry? We have dinner leftovers, I’m perfectly fine with heating it up?” Eret led them to the kitchen as they spoke. 

“I could eat, how about you boys?” Phil leaned down to ask them. It was all formalities. It had been a few days since their last proper meal. 

“Sure,” Techno said. 

“Does Tommy like applesauce?” Eret asked Phil as they pulled a Tupperware bowl out of the fridge. 

“Yeah, he does.” Phil smiled. 

“Phil, if you wanna hop in the shower and warm-up, you can.” Eret offered as they dumped the soup into a pot and put it on the stove. 

“Yeah, that sounds lovely.” 

\---

Eret led his dad away, and Wilbur shifted his weight from one foot to another, feeling awkward. He knew that anyone who was like them could be immediately trusted, Phil had taught him that at a young age. He knew that he was supposed to find someone like them if he ever got separated from Phil. He knew they would be protected. But Will also knew he was supposed to protect them in return. He had many memories of Phil harboring total strangers as if they were family. Still, Wilbur felt strange, standing in a stranger’s home like they were there all the time. 

“M’ still cold,” Techno mumbled, pulling a chair from the dining room table and sitting on it. His feet just barely grazed the ground. That was so cool. Will couldn’t wait until he was old enough to have his feet touch the ground in chairs. His brother shivered, and Wilbur remembered the issue at hand. 

“Here, I can help. Hold Tommy.” He held the toddler out toward his older brother, who accepted him carefully. He knew Techno wasn’t the biggest fan of babies. Tommy reached out and yanked on Techno’s hair. He winced and tried to pull the small hand out of his brown locks. 

Wilbur cupped his hands together, willing a flame to form in them. Phil told him to never use his power unless he was around, but a small fire wouldn’t hurt, right? And he’d put it out the second they didn’t need it anymore. 

After a few minutes of them warming up, a soft set of footsteps was heard. Wilbur turned around and locked eyes with a girl who looked about his age. 

“You’re not Eret. Where’s Eret?” she asked, hesitant. 

“With our dad,” Wilbur answered. 

“Okay.” The girl said and moved closer. “My name’s Niki, what’s yours?” 

“I’m Wilbur! This is Techno, and our brother Tommy” Wilbur gestured to his siblings as he introduced them. 

“That’s cool! I like your power.” Niki said. “I think fire powers are cool. Not like mine. My power is boring.” 

“What’s your power?” Wilbur asked. 

“I can make people feel better when they’re hurt.” 

“I think that’s a pretty cool power,” Techno mumbled, shifting Tommy in his arms. 

“Hey guys, sorry I was gone so long. Wait, Niki, what are you doing up?” Eret said, reentering the room. Wilbur jumped and put out his flame. 

“I heard noises. I was looking for you.” She said.

“Oh! Okay then. Wilbur, Techno, do you like chicken soup?” 

“We do,” Techno answered. 

“Niki, are you gonna stay up with them, or go back to bed?” Eret asked as they poured the soup into two smaller bowls. 

“Can I stay up with them?” She asked. 

“Yeah. But only until they go to sleep. Would you like some more soup, while it’s hot?” 

“No thank you, I’m full.” She smiled at Eret, before pulling a chair out, and gesturing for Wilbur to sit in it. He did, and she sat down next to him. A bowl of soup was set in front of Will, along with a spoon. He reached for it and sighed happily after his first bite. It was delicious. 

“This is delicious, Mr. Eret.” Wilbur smiled up at them as they grabbed Tommy from Techno’s lap. Tommy went willingly, giggling as he was placed into a high chair. Eret grabbed a spoon, dipped it into the applesauce, and started feeding him. 

“So, kids, what are your powers?” Eret asked goodnaturedly. 

“I can control fires. And make them too!” Wilbur proudly announced. Eret raised their eyebrows in interest, then turned to Techno. 

“I have super speed.” He piped up. 

“It makes him really good at fighting! We spar and stuff a lot, he’s super good!” Wilbur jumped on the opportunity to brag about his brother. 

“Impressive.” Eret smiled at them. “Do you know about this guy yet?” they asked, guiding another spoonful into Tommy’s mouth. 

“Nah.” Techno shrugged. 

“You’ll find out eventually, I suppose.” Eret smiled comfortingly at them, and they fell into silence. After a while, Eret got up, rinsed out Tommy’s dishes, and stuck them in the sink. They then grabbed a small pot, and milk from the fridge, and heated it up. As they did that, Techno and Wilbur both brought their bowls to the sink. Good manners, just like Phil taught them. 

Soon enough, there was a glass of warm milk on the table for Wilbur. Niki had a matching one, and Tommy had already started going in on his sippy cup. Will watched as Eret set down a mug in front of Techno. 

“Sorry, I should’ve asked beforehand, do 11-year-olds still have milk before bed?” Eret asked. 

“Not really,” Techno responded, but he brought the mug to his lips anyway. 

“Hey, kiddos, how you holding up?” Phil asked, re-entering the kitchen. He was wearing a comfortable looking pair of sweatpants, as well as his favorite sweater, the ones with the holes in the back so he could stretch out his wings. Will hopped out of his chair and into his father’s arms. 

“Good.” He mumbled, curling slightly into his father. “Mr. Eret is super nice. They gave us warm milk.” Will finished the sentence with a yawn. 

“Aww, are you tired buddy?” He asked, ruffling Wilbur’s curls. 

“No!” He insisted, springing up to emphasize his point. 

“It’s okay to be tired, you can have a bath in the morning.” Phil smiled at him. “Do you want to get ready for bed? It’s pretty late.” 

“...Yeah.” Wilbur reluctantly agreed, getting up and finishing his milk. 

“Niki, it’s probably time you head to bed too,” Eret said, collecting Tommy’s empty sippy cup and depositing it with the rest of the dishes. 

“Okay. Goodnight Wilbur. Goodnight Techno. Goodnight Mr. Will and Techno’s dad.” She yawned, waved, and headed off toward what Wilbur assumed was her room. 

“So.” Eret piped up as they waltzed around the kitchen, cleaning up the mess they had made. “You’ve got two options. I can work out a place for all of you to sleep if you want. But, the guest room has a king-sized mattress so you could all totally share the one bed. If you’ve rather be together.” 

“I think we’d like to be together tonight,” Phil said, and his two older sons agreed with him. Tommy had once again drifted off, slumped over in the high chair. 

“Perfect. I think I’ll be off to bed. Phil, my bedroom is just down the hall from the guest room. Don’t hesitate if you need me.” 

“I won’t.” Phil smiled up at them, and then, they were alone. “Come on boys. Let’s get to bed.” 

Techno nodded, hopping down from his chair. Phil grabbed Tommy, careful not to wake him. And they all wandered toward the bedroom. 


	2. Making Mama So Proud

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hello hello hello! bunny back here again! thanks for all the kind comments on chapter one! noir and i are both super excited about this and it's cool to see that other people are too!
> 
> i would like say that it might be a little while until the next chapter. i've got finals next week, so i wanna be focused on those and not writing. i am about 1k into chapter three though and it's super adorable, i think you all are going to love it!!
> 
> title is from kids by mgmt. enjoy the chapter!
> 
> EDIT: bruh i can’t believe i forgot to mention this but the magic bitches r called verges, verge in singular. noir came up with the name because he is very smart. 
> 
> my main tumblr: electribunny  
> my mineblr: vanilla-minecraft  
> my twitter: electribunny  
> noir's tumblr: h0n04rys3n10r  
> noir's twitter:h0n04rys3n10r

Eret had been more than gracious, more than hospitable, and Phil didn’t think he could thank them enough. The past two weeks his family had been living with theirs had been wonderful. He had almost forgotten the feeling of being safe in a home, with guaranteed meals, and he would never take another shower for granted again. 

As well as the basic things, his family just seemed so  _ happy.  _ Niki, Will, and Techno had become fast friends, and Tommy and Tubbo had just clicked together, despite their limited language skills. It was nice for his kids to just be kids. And the town of South Mapleport (Often shortened to just SMP, Eret had explained.) was beautiful. It was alone, caged in by a large forest on one side of the highway, and an open grassy field on the other. Eret’s house was on the very outskirts, far enough that you could clearly see where the town faded off, leaving just the highway. Best of all, it wasn’t huge, but was big enough that Phil’s family arriving slid completely off the radar. 

Phil looked down as the weight in his lap shifted. He sighed in relief. Tommy had finally,  _ finally,  _ fallen asleep. He ran his hand through the boy’s soft curls and resisted the urge to press a kiss to his forehead. He just looked so peaceful, pacifier in mouth, fingers half-heartedly curled into Phil’s shirt. 

He looked up toward his other two boys. They were sitting outside, where Phil had been desperately rocking back and forth on the porch swing to try and lull his youngest to sleep. Wilbur and Techno had crawled out and joined him. Techno looked about ready to fall asleep himself, eyes closed and sitting criss-cross on the floor, as Wilbur braided his hair. Phil had to admit, with the midday sun shining directly on them, he felt pretty relaxed. He guessed his boys felt the same way. 

“Finally got Tubbo to sleep.” Eret yawned, stepping out onto the porch. It wasn’t hard for the group to gather that Tubbo’s powers had something to do with emotions. When he was happy, everyone around him was happy. When he cried, everyone around him cried. 

And when he was tired, whoever was putting him to bed ended up knocked out too. 

“That’s funny, Tommy was having troubles as well.” Phil smiled up at them, as the teenager set themselves on the porch swing, leaning tiredly into the armrest. As quickly as Wilbur braided Techno’s hair, he unbraided it, and after mumbling something to Techno, the boys were off into the yard, gathering flowers. As soon as they were out of earshot, Eret piped up. 

“You could probably stay here, you know.” They said. “The people here in Mapleport aren’t very bright. Or they just don’t care enough to pay attention to the people around them. I mean, I’ve been here since Niki was Tommy’s age, and nothing’s happened yet. Speaking of, she’d probably appreciate having Will at school with her. And. I guess. We’ve all gotten so close. I’d hate to see you guys go back to being homeless.” 

“Speaking of, how are _ you guys _ not homeless? I can’t imagine they’re just handing out houses to random 14-year-olds.” Phil questioned. 

“I wasn’t always the oldest one here.” Eret started. “We’re all foster kids. Our foster mom could wipe memories. It was great.” They smiled sadly. “Got us out of a lot of trouble with the hunters. But, one day, she left and never came back. I can only assume the worst. But, they never came to get us and we still receive our stimulus checks. So, I transferred to online school, and here we are, a year later.” 

“Wow, that sounds really tough. You did a really brave thing, taking on the parental role at such a young age. That’s really commendable, Eret.” 

“Thanks.” They smiled at Phil. 

“Do you wish you were still in public school?” He asked. 

“Yeah. I mean, I was supposed to be a freshman this year. I’m a little disappointed that I’m gonna miss out on my high school experience. But, it’s for the best. My family always comes first.” Eret said. Phil smiled to himself. He finally had a way to pay back Eret for their hospitality. 

“Hey, Eret?” 

“Hmm?” 

“I’ll help you enroll in school, okay?” 

“But, who would watch Tubbo during the day? He’s a Verge, I can’t exactly drop him off at a daycare.” 

“I’ll watch him. I mean, It’s not like I have anywhere else to be.” 

“You’re staying?!” They shot up, suddenly very excited. 

“Yeah.” Phil smiled at them. “Yeah, I am.”

“Woohoo!” They threw their arms up, obviously excited. Phil couldn’t help but laugh along with them. 

“Yay! Yay! Yay!” A tiny voice piped up. Both teenagers shifted their attention to Phil’s lap, where Tommy was clapping his hands, apparently excited about something. 

“I...think I woke him up. Sorry.” Eret apologized sheepishly. 

“Ah, don’t worry about it mate.” Phil smiled, before looking over to the teenager. They made eye contact, and burst into laughter. 

\---

Techno pulled the black hoodie over his head (a hand-me-down from Eret.), careful not to mess up his hair. He would never admit it out loud, but he secretly loved it when Wilbur braided his hair. But he was  _ Technoblade _ . He wasn’t supposed to enjoy his elaborate twin braids, filled with flowers. So he insisted it was just to humor his brother. 

He glanced at himself in the mirror. A slightly fuzzy image of himself was looking back. A pair of sneakers, barely hanging on. Jeans with a few too many holes in them to be considered fashionably worn. A hand me down hoodie. 

Princess hair. 

He tore his gaze away. He was eleven. He was a  _ preteen.  _ He was cool and rugged. The braids were for his brother’s amusement and no other reason. 

“Techno, are you coming with us or not!” Speak of the devil. He ran downstairs where his brother was eagerly waiting, bouncing on his toes. Eret was there too, smiling fondly at his antics. 

“You got everything?” They asked Techno, one hand on the door. 

“Yup.” He looked back at them. 

“Come on then, let’s go, let’s go, let’s go!” Wilbur grabbed Techno’s sleeve. 

“Wilbur, you just saw Niki this morning.” Techno pointed out as they began their walk. 

“Yeah! But I miss her! It sucks that she’s at school all day!” Techno just smiled and let himself be dragged down the sidewalk. They walked in comfortable silence until the schoolyard came into view. The kids still waiting to be picked up were playing on the playground. At the sight of them, Niki jumped down from the swing she was on and ran to them. 

“Niki!” Wilbur smiled as she came to a stop next to them. 

“Hi Will!” She beamed back. “Oh, Techno! I like your hair!” 

“Thanks.” He mumbled. 

“I did it!” Wilbur proudly exclaimed as Eret wandered off to sign Niki out. 

“It looks really good!” She smiled at both of them. Eret returned. 

“How was school, Niki?” They asked as they began the walk home. 

“It was a lot of fun! We did some new spelling words today. I wish Will and Techno could come with me though. It would be a lot better with them there.” 

Eret laughed softly. Techno eyed them suspiciously. 

He listened to the excited blabbering of his brother and friend for the rest of the walk to the house. When they stepped up the porch, Phil was waiting at the door. Tommy and Tubbo could clearly be seen messing around with a ball in the living room. 

“Hey, guys.” He smiled at them. “Could you all sit on the couch? Eret and I have something we want to tell you.” 

Techno hadn’t done anything wrong. So why were they in trouble? What had Wilbur and Niki done? 

“You’re not in trouble, Tech. Stop thinking so loud.” Phil leaned down to mumble in his ear as he walked behind the group into the living room. 

“How did you know what I was thinking?” 

“I’m your dad.” He smiled before patting his head. Techno couldn’t help but smile at that. He sat on the couch and folded his hands in his lap. 

“Well, kids. You know we’ve been staying here for a while, yeah?” Phil started. Techno’s heart sank. He knew eventually they would have to leave, but he didn’t want it to come so soon. He really enjoyed staying with Eret. 

“Well, today Eret offered to let us stay with them, permanently.” Phil continued. It took a second for Techno to process the words. 

“Really?!” Wilbur shot up from his spot on the couch. 

“Yeah.” Eret smiled. 

“Yes! Woo!” Will jumped in excitement. He pulled Niki up from the couch and into his arms. On the floor, Tommy started clapping excitedly. Techno couldn’t help but smile at that. Tommy didn’t even know what was going on, he was just excited because his family was. It was cute. 

The couch dipped beside him. He curled up into Phil’s side wordlessly. 

“Are you excited, Techno?” 

“Yeah, I am.” He wrapped an arm around Phil and felt a kiss being pressed to the top of his head. 

\---

Wilbur was so excited. He loved Christmas! It was his favorite holiday! And it was shaping up to be the most exciting one yet! (Well, maybe besides his first Christmas with Phil, but he was only two. It was more special for his dad and Techno than it was for him.)

Lots had happened in the past two weeks. Eret took them to thrift shops for clothes, and furniture where needed. There had also been some shuffling of bedrooms. Tommy and Tubbo shared a room, and he, Techno, and Niki also shared one. Phil took over the guest room. Niki got to play with him more since she was on winter break, but it didn’t matter much because he and Techno had to sit through a bunch of tutoring lessons to catch up to the other kids in their grades. It wasn’t too difficult, though. Back when they were homeless, Phil would sit them down and do school days with them whenever he could. 

Phil got a job. He was a cashier at the grocery store. When he wasn’t at his job, he was working on getting his GED. Wilbur didn’t know what a GED was, and he was a little too embarrassed to ask. It didn’t matter though, because his dad still always had time to spend with him and his brothers. 

“Wilbur! Stop rolling around so much and go to sleep!” Techno loudly whispered to him, leaning down from his top bunk. 

“I’m sorry! I’m excited!” Wilbur whispered back. 

“I know you are! But Santa won’t come if you’re awake!” Techno answered. 

“Who told you that? That’s not true!” 

“Phil did!” Techno replied. That made Wilbur hesitate. He trusted Phil. Phil was right about most things. 

“Okay! Fine! Night night, Techno!” Wilbur whispered up toward his brother. 

“Goodnight, Wilbur.” 

When Wilbur woke up, it was to Niki shaking him. 

“Will, Will, wake up! It’s Christmas!” 

“Did Santa come?” He shot up, excited. 

“I don’t know! We waited for you to go check!” Niki responded.

“Okay, I’m coming!” He grabbed Techno and Niki’s hands, and together they ran downstairs. 

The living room looked fairly normal. The tree they had decorated together looked the same, the presents that had been there the night before were still there. But there were six presents that weren’t there before, wrapped in golden paper and placed neatly under the tree. 

Wilbur let go of Niki and Techno. He carefully approached the tree, then bent down to read the label on one of them. 

“To: Thomas Watson. From: Santa!” He whipped his head around. “He came, guys! He actually came!” 

“I’m surprised, you were awake for so long.” Techno rolled his eyes, but he was smiling. 

“Hey, don’t be mean, it’s Christmas! Come on, Niki, you wake up Eret, and Techno and I can wake up Phil!” 

“Okay!” She smiled at them, and they ran off to their respective guardians’ rooms. 

Phil and Eret both seemed less than happy to be woken up. Wilbur didn’t understand, weren’t they excited? They both stumbled into the living room, being all but dragged in by the kids. 

“Oh, would you look at that! I think Santa came!” Phil pointed out the new presents under the tree. He sounded very tired. 

“He did, he did! We already checked!” Niki looked up at him, smiling. 

“Well, isn’t that exciting!” He smiled at her, before turning to Eret. “Hey, if you go wake up the boys, I’ll get a pot of coffee started.” 

“Coffee sounds wonderful.” Eret rubbed their eyes. Wilbur cringed a little. Coffee was gross. He didn’t know how adults liked it. 

“Wilbur, would you light the fire for us?” Phil said, stopping in the doorway to the kitchen. 

“Sure!” He smiled and walked over to the fireplace. He couldn’t build the fires very well, but Techno could, so he let his brother do most of the work there. Once Techno was done putting in the kindling and the logs, Wilbur leaned forward and stuck his hand out, lighting the fire. 

“Oh wow, that’s a lovely fire you’ve got there!” Eret smiled, walking back in. He was holding Tommy in his left arm, and Tubbo’s hand in his right. Both boys were wearing matching Christmas onesies. It was very cute. He, Techno, and Niki also had matching Christmas pajamas. 

“Thank you!” Wilbur smiled at them. Phil came back in then, with two cups of coffee. He set them both down at the dining table, before sitting down on the couch. Eret set Tommy down and flopped down next to him. 

“Okay, we won’t keep you waiting much longer. Do we wanna do stockings first?” Phil asked. 

Opening presents was a lot of fun. They all got some pretty cool stuff. But finally, all the gifts they had gotten each other had been distributed, and the only ones that remained were the six from Santa. 

“Will, I think it’s your turn to pass out the presents,” Phil said. Wilbur nodded, and grabbed the presents, passing them out to everybody. 

“Niki King.” He handed her her box. 

“Tubbo King.” He handed the box to Eret. They would give it to Tubbo when it was his turn to open it. 

“Eret King.” He passed Eret their gift. They looked at it, then looked at Phil, raising an eyebrow. Eret and Phil both laughed. Wilbur didn’t know why. 

“Thomas Watson. Technoblade Watson, andddd, me! Wilbur Soot-Watson!” He sat back down, having distributed all the presents. He watched as everybody opened theirs. 

Niki got a mini baking set. Tubbo got a light-up chew toy. Eret got a brand new backpack. Tommy got a wooden rattle, and Techno got two fencing swords. (“Don’t get too excited, the ends aren’t actually sharp.” Phil had said.)

Finally, it was his turn. He carefully tore off the wallpaper, and inside was a box. He pried open the box, and there was a case. He zipped open the case. 

“A tiny guitar!” He exclaimed. 

“No, It’s a ukulele!” Techno said, laughing. 

“What’s a ukelele?” Wilbur asked. 

“It’s kind of like a tiny guitar, so you were close, Wilbur. It’s an instrument though. It’s super easy, you’ll pick it up fast.” Phil said. Wilbur smiled at him. As everyone went to play with their new toys, Wilbur got up from his spot by the fire and sat down on the couch next to Phil. 

“Do you know how to play the ukulele?” He asked. 

“A little bit. Your mother taught me, back when you were just a tiny  _ tiny  _ baby.” He modeled something tiny with his hands. Wilbur giggled. “She would be really proud of you, Will. You’re a lot like her. You look a lot like her, too.” His voice broke a little, and when Wilbur looked up, there were tears in his dad’s eyes. 

“Phil! Why are you sad? It’s Christmas! It’s the best holiday!” 

“Christmas was her favorite holiday too.” Phil sighed, before smiling at him. “Don’t worry about me, why don’t you go play with your brother? I think he’s dying to test out those swords.” 

“Okay, I love you, Phil!”

“I love you too, Wilbur.” Phil smiled at him, before reaching over and ruffling his hair. Wilbur hopped off the couch and went to his brother. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> my moms boyfriend's son is 11, and he got so pressed the other day when i called him a kid. he was like "i'm not a kid!! i'm a preteen!" and it was very cute but i immediately went "11 y/o techno would def do something like this i gotta include it in the chapter somehow." so i did. 
> 
> i left some foreshadowing about tommy's ability in here. anyone think they can guess it?
> 
> anyway, i hope you enjoyed the chapter! comments and kudos r forever appreciated, so feel free to leave either if you feel so inclined!


	3. Cause I'm Out There

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> me, last week: this chapter might be a little late because I have finals  
> me now: lol nevermind ignore that. 
> 
> anyway, im not done with my finals yet, but they're going really well so far! tomorrow is my last day before winter break, and then i just get to grind out chapters for a few weeks
> 
> this is the last chapter of what noir and i have dubbed era one, meaning the next main chapter will be in a new time period. so try and soak up all the little kid cuteness while you can, because after the interlude (which i'm posting at the same time as this), it'll be gone. the kids r growing up :,(
> 
> chapter title is from alien boy by oliver tree. comments and kudos are forever appreciated, please feel free to leave either if you feel so inclined! enjoy the chapter!
> 
> my main tumblr/twitter:electribunny  
> my mineblr: vanilla-minecraft  
> noir's tumblr/twitter:h0n04rys3n10r

To say Techno was nervous was an understatement. He had spent a lot of time getting ready, but he hadn’t been to real school in two years. He was used to having Phil there to protect him, Wilbur to entertain him, Tommy to make him feel responsible. 

And now, for the first time in two years, he would be away from his family for more than a couple of minutes. So, he brought pieces of his family with him. In his hair, Wilbur had placed a small flower into his braid. It was mostly hidden by his brown locks, but it comforted Techno nonetheless. From Phil, there was a feather that Phil himself let Techno pick out and carefully pluck from his wings. It sat protected in his glasses case. And finally, from Tommy, a picture. It was just scribbles of red and pink crayon on a piece of lined paper, but it was carefully placed into his binder nonetheless. 

“Techno.” Phil lightly scolded as he walked into the living room. Techno sighed and grabbed his glasses case from his bag, pulling out the thin red frames and placing them on his face. He hadn’t known he needed glasses until a few weeks prior when he had a mandatory eye exam as part of his enrollment to the school. While they did help, he thought they made him look stupid, and therefore he hated wearing them. Phil insisted though. 

Wilbur looked more excited than nervous. His own Phil feather was carefully woven into his red toque, which was placed on his head. Techno couldn’t see it, but he knew that in his backpack was a matching picture from Tommy. And Techno’s favorite red hair ribbon, normally in his hair, was tied in a bow around Will’s wrist. 

“I’m so excited,” Niki said, smiling. 

“Well, are you guys ready to go?” Phil asked them, as he finished velcroing Tubbo’s boots closed. They all smiled, nodded, and began their walk. 

SMP High was across town, and Eret had left early in the morning in order to catch the bus. They were probably already in class, armed with a 504 that allowed them to wear their sunglasses indoors. Eret said they needed them for “Extreme Photosensitivity.” That was a pretty big word, but Techno had an idea of what it meant. Apparently they had a 504 for the same thing from before they switched to online, so it wasn’t too hard to get them back on track. That was what they had said, anyway, when Techno asked. 

However, since Eret was long gone, it meant the remaining six all had to go on the walk to school together. Techno didn’t mind though, and he was sure everyone else didn’t either. 

“Techo!” Techno looked down to the source of the noise, where Tommy was waddling at his feet, reaching up for him. Normally his younger brother preferred the company of Wilbur, so Techno froze, pleasantly surprised, before reaching down and picking up Tommy. 

“Hey, Tommy.” He smiled at his brother, adjusting him in his arms. He loved Tommy, he really did, but he was just so awkward around small children. He knew Wilbur had officially become part of the family when he was around Tommy’s age, but Techno had only been 5 then. He was  _ also _ a little kid, it didn’t matter much. But now he was walking, with his baby brother in his arms, and he had no idea what to do. 

“Techo?” Tommy said again, although this time, his voice was laced with worry. Techno panicked. Was he really so nervous that Tommy was noticing? He had to do something to calm his brother down. What did Phil do to entertain Tommy? 

“Aaaa-Boo!” Techno whispered to him, leaning forward and tapping his nose lightly. Tommy erupted into giggles at that, and Techno’s nerves calmed. As awkward as he was, he could still make his baby brother laugh. Things would be fine. 

Tommy seemed to relax after that too. 

\---

Wilbur was so excited. He wanted to run off with Niki as soon as the school approached his field of view, but he stopped himself. He knew Phil would freak out. 

It didn’t stop him from speeding up his pace, though. 

Phil halted them just outside of earshot from all the kids playing in the schoolyard. 

“Remember, as far as  **anyone** here is concerned, we are all just a normal  _ human _ family, okay? You two boys barely even know what a Verge is, got it?” Phil said sternly. 

“Mhm.” Techno nodded. 

“Do you need me to go over the backstory again?” 

“No, I know it! We got wrongfully evicted from our old house, and we’re living with our family friends until we can get back on our feet. We have known Eret and Niki and Tubbo for a long time and we were most certainly not homeless for two years before we ended up in Mapleport.” Wilbur recited, repeating verbatim what Phil had told them. 

“Yeah, but maybe don’t sound like you’re reading off a script when you say it.” Phil chuckled softly, and Wilbur smiled too. 

“Well, I think you guys are ready to go. Have fun for me, okay?” Phil smiled down at them, and Wilbur nodded. He saw Techno nod in his peripherals, too. Wilbur turned to Techno, where Tommy was still in his arms, and leaned forward, pressing a kiss to his forehead. His brother giggled at that, and Wilbur smiled as he was passed back into Phil’s arms. 

“Say bye-bye to your brothers, Tommy!” Phil said. He turned and waved at Techno and Wilbur dramatically. “Say, Bye Wilbur! Bye Techno!” 

Tommy began waving at them with both hands, a huge smile on his face. “Bye Wilby! Bye Techo!”

“Bye Tommy!” They both waved back as the bell rang. They said a final quick goodbye before Phil turned, holding Tommy in one arm and Tubbo’s hand in the other, and began wandering off. 

Wilbur felt a little less secure without Phil there, but he could be brave. He took a deep breath and began walking into the school. Niki and Techno went with him. He stopped again outside his and Niki’s classroom. He knew where it was, the very nice office lady had given him and Techno a tour during the winter break, but he also knew that this is where he would have to leave Techno. 

“Bye, Techno,” Wilbur said, staring at the door. He was much more nervous than he had been 10 minutes ago. 

“Bye, Wilbur,” Techno responded. Wilbur hesitated for a second, before throwing himself into Techno’s arms. 

“Imma miss you.” He mumbled into his brother’s shirt. 

“Me too. But I’ll see you at lunch, okay?” 

“Yeah.” Wilbur pulled away. Techno walked off toward his own class, and suddenly, for the first time in years, Wilbur wasn’t with his family. 

“Are you ready?” Niki asked him. He couldn’t help but smile. The excitement he felt was coming back. He nodded at her, and she grabbed his hand, pulling him into the classroom. 

“Hello, Niki!” The teacher greeted her from the door. “And Oh! You must be Wilbur!”

“I am.” He nodded at her. 

“Well, Mr. Soot. Wait, do you prefer Soot or Watson?” 

“Both. Soot-Watson.” 

“Well, Mr. Soot-Watson, we are  _ very _ excited to have you here in our classroom! My name is Mrs. Smith. It’s very nice to meet you! I made Niki your table partner, since I was told you already know each other. You can go sit down now if you’d like! We’ll be starting soon!” 

“Thank you, ma’am.” Wilbur smiled at her, before walking away. Niki led him to their table, and he sat down. 

“This is gonna be so awesome.” He smiled at her. She smiled back. 

\---

Techno took a deep breath, preparing himself to open the door. He gathered the courage, and turned the knob, walking in. 

About half the kids were already in their seats. The other half was wandering around, sharpening pencils and talking with their friends. Techno walked over to the teacher’s desk, where he was typing away on his laptop. 

“Excuse me, sir?” 

“Huh?” The teacher looked up. “Oh! You’re the new kid, huh? Technoblade, right?” 

“Most people just call me Techno.” He mumbled. 

“Just Techno, got it.” The teacher flashed a smile at him. “Well, kiddo, my name’s Mr. Cliff. I don’t have many rules here, just respect me and I’ll respect you, capiche?” Techno just nodded at him. 

“I put you in a table group with Dream and George. They’re a little chatty, but they’re good kids, promise.” He looked up before calling out. “George! Dream! Raise your hands!” Techno looked out into the group of now settled kids, and in the back table, were two kids, one blonde and one brunette, both raising their hands. 

“See em?” Mr. Cliff asked. 

“Yeah.” 

“Great. Welcome to the class, lil’ homie.” Mr. Cliff patted him on the back, and then Techno was walking to the back of the classroom. Each of the tables had 3 seats, and Techno slid into the one that was empty. 

“Hi!” The brunette smiled at him. Techno smiled sheepishly and waved back. 

“Hi,” he muttered back. 

“Come on, you don’t have to be scared! George and I are nice!” The blonde said.

_ “Reynolds! Hefford! James!” _ Mr. Cliff called out. Techno snapped his head up, confused. 

“Oh, that’s just how he takes attendance.” The brunette (George?) laughed. “Don’t worry about it.” 

“Oh, okay.” Techno nodded. 

“Well, what’s your name? I’m Dream!” the blonde said. 

“Techno.” 

“Do you like dodgeball Techno?” Dream asked. 

_ “Carder! Castillion! Gray!” _

“I do.” 

“Cool. We can be friends then.” 

_ “Mell! Little! Harrison!”  _

“Cool.” Techno nodded. 

“Where did you move from?” George asked. 

_ “Ngyuen! Teller! Kerr!”  _

“Antarctica City,” Techno replied. It wasn’t  _ technically  _ a lie. That was where they had lived, back before they were homeless. 

“Wow, that’s really far away,” George commented. 

“Yeah, it i-” 

“Clayton! Davidson! Watson!” 

“Here!” Dream and George shouted out. 

“That’s funny, because I only heard two of you.” Mr. Cliff quipped, raising an eyebrow. 

“Here,” Techno said, just loud enough to be heard. The whole class was looking at him. His face burned in embarrassment. 

Luckily, Mr. Cliff started class then, and Dream and George both stuck their tongues out at the people staring at them. They looked away. Techno decided that his new tablemates weren’t all that bad. 

\---

Techno stared at his paper, methodically working through the long division problem. He was almost done, was just working out the remainder, when Dream tapped his shoulder. 

“You get to go first.” He whispered, sliding a piece of paper over to Techno. There was nothing on it except a crudely drawn five by five grid. 

“What’s this?” Techno whispered back. 

“Three-way tik tack toe! It’s kinda like normal tik tack toe, but you play it with three people instead of two! We made it up with our friend Sapnap. He’s only a fourth-grader but he’s still pretty cool.” Dream smiled at him. 

“Yeah, Sapnap’s the only person in the lower grades that’s cool. The rest of em are dweebs.” George chimed in. 

“No, my brother’s in third grade, and he’s pretty cool,” Techno responded.

“Okay. Sapnap and Techno’s brother. They’re the only ones.” George said. 

“What’s your brother’s name?” Dream asked. 

“Wilbur. My other brother is named Tommy, but he’s just a baby.” 

“Dude, take your turn already!” George whined. 

“I don’t know how to play!” 

“Oh, sorry.” Dream giggled. “Pick any shape you want, then just play like it’s a two-way tik tack toe.” 

Techno drew a triangle right in the middle space before handing the paper to George. 

“Damn! You took the best spot!” 

“Language, George.” Mr. Cliff said, suddenly standing at their table. In the excitement of the conversation, Techno hadn’t even noticed him wandering over. “Any questions about the worksheet?” 

“Nope!” Dream said. George was trying to subtly hide their paper. 

“Well then, what problem are you guys on?”

“Uhhhhh.” George stared at his empty paper. 

“Five.” Techno chimed in. 

“Five?” It was obvious Mr. Cliff wasn’t buying it. 

“Yeah. We’ve just been doing it all on my paper. It’s easier.” Techno held his worksheet up where he was, in fact on number 5. 

“Well, alright then. I was worried George and Dream were distracting you. They’re not the best at staying focused.” Mr. Cliff smiled at the three of them, and then he was gone. 

“Dude, you just saved us!” George said, handing the paper to Dream. 

“Yeah, well,” Techno hesitated. “We’re friends now, right?” 

“Yeah. We’re friends!” Dream said it so easily, like there was no doubt about it. It made Techno feel warm inside. He never was the best at making friends. And here he was, on the first day of school, and he already had two friends!

Dream slid the paper toward him. He glanced at it, took note of the x and the swirl that had joined his triangle, and made his next move. 

They spent the rest of class idly talking, doing their worksheet, and going through game after game of three-way tik tack toe. Turns out Techno was pretty good at it. 

\---

“Techno, did you pack a lunch, or do you have to get yours from the cafeteria?” Dream asked as the class began gathering their things for recess. 

“I packed mine,” Techno responded, pulling his lunchbox out of his backpack. He smiled when he caught a glimpse of Tommy’s picture. 

“Okay cool. I have to go buy mine, but Dream packs his too, so you can go with him!” George smiled at them both before walking off. Dream smiled at him and grabbed his hand, taking him outside. 

“I know it’s cold, but the trick is if you eat at the outside tables instead of the inside tables, you don’t have to wait for them to let you go to the playground, you can just go play as soon as you’re done with your food.” Dream explained, leading him to a table. There was already a kid there. He had black hair and looked a grade or two younger than Techno. He was pulling a PB&J out of his lunch box. 

“Dream!” The kid smiled as they approached. 

“Sapnap!” Dream smiled back, sitting down. “Sapnap, this is Techno. He’s our friend now.” 

“Hi, Techno!” Sapnap waved at him. 

“Hey.” Techno waved back, before sitting down. He opened up his lunch pail and was met with a sticky note, sitting on top of his food. 

_ Techno,  _

_ I hope your first day of sixth grade is going well! I know you’re a little scared, but I hope you’re having fun and making some friends! I am so proud of you.  _

_ Love, Phil  _

“Who is Phil?” Dream asked, leaning over Techno’s shoulder to read the note. 

“My Dad.” 

“Why did he say Phil and not Dad though? I don’t call my Dad by his name.” Sapnap said through a mouthful of food. 

“I don’t know. We all call him Phil. I call him Dad sometimes, though.” 

“That’s a little weird, but alright!” Dream shrugged. 

“What’s weird?” George asked, sliding into the seat next to Sapnap with a tray in his hands. 

“Techno calls his dad Phil and not Dad,” Sapnap said. 

“Not all the time! I call him Dad, I just call him Phil too!” Techno felt defensive. He liked his new friends, but he didn’t like them making fun of the way his family worked. 

“Alright. Now come on! If we eat fast we can get the nice ball for dodgeball!” George said, and immediately began devouring his food. 

“First person done with their lunch wins!” Dream called out, and immediately he and Sapnap dug into their food. And, Techno knew he wasn’t supposed to use his powers around humans, but, he also knew he could turn his speed up just a little bit. Not enough to be noticeable, but definitely enough to win the lunch race. 

Techno also knew that he  _ really  _ wanted to impress his new friends. 

“Dude, you ate your lunch so fast! That was so cool!” Dream raved as they made their way to the recess shed. George had sprinted ahead to claim their spot in the line, so they weren’t worried about getting to the shed fast. 

“Thanks.” He mumbled, smiling to himself. 

“I got it!” George was running back to them. “Minx was in line before me but she wanted the jump rope, not the ball.” He smiled, slowing down next to the group. He held a red rubber ball in his hands. 

Minx. Techno recognized the name. He was pretty sure she was one of Niki’s friends. Niki. Wilbur. 

He told his brother that he would see him at lunch. He whipped his head around, looking for him. He eventually found the boy. Wilbur was sitting on the grass, laughing as Niki placed a flower crown on his head. It didn’t stay well, because he refused to take off his toque. Next to them was a boy with black hair, wearing a yellow duck sweater. He too had a toque shoved onto his head, although his was navy blue. He held up an attempt at a flower crown and laughed as it fell apart. Wilbur laughed too. A girl ran up to them with a jump rope (Who he assumed was Minx.)

That was when Wilbur looked up and noticed Techno staring at him. He waved to his brother, and Techno waved back. 

“Techno, heads up!” Sapnap called. On instinct, Techno whipped around and grabbed the ball that was hurling toward him. Luckily, none of his new friends seemed to notice just how impossibly fast his reaction was. 

“Dude, I thought for sure I got you!” George groaned, stepping into the middle of their makeshift circle. Techno hadn’t even noticed it form. He stepped to the outside and aimed his shot. 

It hit Dream square in the chest. He grinned. 


	4. interlude one

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hey, since this is the first interlude, i should explain things. interludes are used to divide up what noir and i have dubbed "eras." there are three of them, where they are all in three distinct stages of their life. interludes are under 1000 words, and serve as transitional segments between eras. so for example, this chapter takes place between era one and era two. there will also be an interlude between the finale and the epilogue. 
> 
> hope you enjoy! as always, comments and kudos r forever appreciated!
> 
> my main tumblr/twitter:electribunny  
> my mineblr: vanilla-minecraft  
> noir's tumblr/twitter: h0n04rys3n10r

Phil smiled, leading Eret and their family out onto the porch of his house.  _ His  _ house. 

He loved Eret like a sibling, but there was something so exciting about not living with them anymore.  _ His _ house. It felt like success. 

It was their first night in their new house, and to celebrate, Phil had thrown a bit of a housewarming party. It also doubled as a “Wow Phil somehow managed to speedrun getting a college degree and is now in the process of being hired as a teacher at only 20 years old.” party, according to Eret. 

It had been a lot of fun, though. His new house had a pretty large backyard, with a nice patio. So he had dragged a barbeque out there and told his kids to go wild while he grilled. It was summer, after all. They should be outside. 

Techno had invited his friends over, and he and Dream spent most of the day sparring with Techno’s fencing swords. When they got tired, they went to sit in the grass with George and Sapnap, where the fourteen-year-old was dumping all his advice for middle school onto the poor soon to be seventh-grader. When Techno and Dream joined them, the conversation switched to how excited they all were to be starting high school. 

Phil knew that transferring Techno to an online school for high school was for the best, but he couldn’t help but worry. How would Techno fare without the daily social interaction with his friends? Phil hoped they wouldn’t grow apart. Techno was especially close with Dream, often referring to the boy as his best friend. 

He sighed, turning his attention over to his other son. Wilbur, Niki, Quackity, and Minx were sitting in a circle, very engrossed with their game of telephone. Quackity said something, and the group burst into giggles. 

Tommy and Tubbo both toddled over to the circle. The two four-year-olds had been alternating between the two friend groups for the entirety of the party, excited to be able to spend time with the older kids. 

“Will! Tag!” Tommy yelled out, lightly smacking Wilbur’s shoulder. 

“Oh, it’s on!” Wilbur yelled, getting up. Tommy and Tubbo both shrieked, running off. Wilbur let them run, before getting a mischievous look on his face. He sprinted over to Techno, tapping him on the head. 

“Tag!” He giggled before running off. Before Phil knew it, all the kids in the yard were engaged in a very intense game of tag. At some point, completely unspoken, they all agreed to switch to freeze tag. 

“They look like they’re having fun,” Eret commented, stepping outside. They had two cans of Pepsi in their hand, and they tossed one of them to Phil. 

“They are.” Phil smiled, cracking his open. “You should go join ‘em. You’ll be attending the same school as Dream and George in a month, after all.” Phil said jokingly. 

“Yeah, but I’m gonna be focusing all my ‘bully the freshmen’ energy on Techno. I’m gonna be the only senior in his life, I gotta make up the slack.” They laughed. 

“You better not be making fun of my son.” Phil threatened, jokingly. Eret just laughed even harder. 

But, all good things had to come to an end. It was around 7, and the sun had begun to set. Tommy and Tubbo had begun yawning, and the last kid, Dream, had been picked up about five minutes before. (His father was terrifying. He didn’t say much and wore his hunter gear everywhere. Phil wondered how he would feel to find out his son was best friends with a Verge. He already didn’t approve of the Watson’s, specifically Phil’s young age. Phil tried to avoid contact with Mr. Clayton as much as possible.) 

“Tub-tub, don’t be sad!” Tommy said, seemingly out of nowhere. Everyone looked down at the toddlers. Tubbo didn’t  _ look _ too upset, and none of them were feeling any sadness from him, so Phil wondered how Tommy came to that conclusion. 

“Is just a little bit of sad. Don’t worry.” Tubbo responded. “‘M just gonna miss you.” 

“You don’t gotta miss me! You can see our house from your house! We are super close!” To prove his point, Tommy pointed, across the street and three houses down, where the King family did in fact live. 

“Okay.” Tubbo reached forward, wrapping his arms around Tommy. Tommy followed suit. 

“Hey, Toms?” Phil asked. “How did you know Tubbo was feeling upset? It wasn’t strong enough for any of us to feel it, how did you?” 

“I don’t know how,” Tommy said, pulling away from his friend. “I just know.”

“You just know?” Techno asked, raising an eyebrow. 

“Yeah! You are happy right now.” He pointed at Techno. “You are excited.” He pointed to Phil. “You are tired.” He pointed to Niki. 

“Wait.” Phil froze in his tracks. It couldn’t be. “Hey, Toms, you see that lady down the street, walking her dog? Do you know what she’s feeling?” 

Tommy looked down the street. He stopped for a second, obviously concentrating. “It’s kinda hard. She’s really far away. But I think she’s angry.” They waited in silence for a few seconds, but as she grew closer, you could hear her yelling into her phone. She  _ was _ in fact angry. 

“Holy shit,” Phil said. Wilbur gasped at the use of language before giggling. Techno smacked his arm. 

“And  _ now _ you are super super excited!” Tommy clapped his hands, obviously proud that he was making his father happy. 

“Tommy! That’s your power! You’re an empath!” He scooped up Tommy into his arms and began peppering him in kisses. “You’re an empath!” 

“What’s that meannn!?” Tommy said through his shrieking laughs. 

“You can feel what other people feel! This makes you special!” Phil twirled his son in his arms, and the two families joined in on the celebration. 

_ end of era one.  _

  
  
  



	5. What to Say to You?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> wwwelcome to era 2, everybody! era 2 is the shortest of the 3 eras, with only two chapters planned! everyone's a little older here, so i figured i'd specify their ages just to avoid confusion. 
> 
> phil 24, techno 18, wilbur 15, tommy 8, eret 21, niki 14, tubbo 9, fundy 15. 
> 
> anyway, i got recognized in someone elses comment section as being the author of this fic. kinda felt like that one spiderman meme. mental_kitten, if ur reading this, hi. 
> 
> noir is feeling a little sick rn, so say something nice for him in the comments? he still beta read this for me despite being under the weather. i couldn't ask for a better partner in this project, seriously. 
> 
> chapter title is from dear theodosia from hamilton! enjoy the chapter!
> 
> my main tumblr/twitter: electribunny  
> my mineblr: vanilla-minecraft  
> noir's tumblr/twitter: h0n04rys3n10r

“Do you know what you’re going to be for Halloween yet?” Tubbo asked. 

“No,” Tommy responded, taking off his backpack and fishing around for his bike lock. “Do you?” 

“Yeah! I’m gonna be a bee!” Tubbo smiled at him. 

“I could’ve guessed that.” Tommy laughed. “What is it with you and bees anyway?” 

“I dunno. I just think they’re cool. Hey, this isn’t opening.” Tubbo handed his lock to Tommy. 

He looked down at it. “It’s because you didn’t put in the combo right, genius.” Tommy rolled his eyes affectionately, before opening the lock and handing it back to his best friend. 

“Thank you!” Tubbo locked up his bike. Tommy followed suit. Once they were both secure on the bike stand, they made their way into the school. 

“Anyway, Halloween! It’s in two weeks! You gotta decide!” Tubbo continued their conversation from earlier. The bell rang. 

“I dunno, big man. I haven’t really thought about it.” 

“Uhhh, maybe you could be a ladybug! Then we could match! That would be cool!” 

“Techno would make fun of me.” 

“So?” 

“Wilbur would, too.” 

“Oh, I don’t think Wilbur wou-” Tubbo was interrupted by Tommy grabbing his backpack, stopping him before he walked into the classroom. “What?” 

“Someone in there is in a  _ terrible _ mood. It’s overpowering everyone else’s feelings.” Tommy muttered under his breath. 

“Ugh, I hope it’s not Adam. He always makes fun of me when he’s angry.” 

“Hope not.” Tommy sighed before walking in. He stood at his cubby for a second, locking in on different people’s emotions, trying to figure out who was so upset that they were dragging down the whole room. He almost whined when he figured it out. He didn’t, because he was 8 and he was a big kid and didn’t whine anymore, but almost. 

“What?” Tubbo asked, shrugging off his coat and putting it into his cubby.

“It’s Mrs. Smith.” 

“Noooooo.” Tubbo threw his head back. 

“Dude, you gotta go talk to her. I didn’t do my homework last night.” 

“You didn’t do your homework? Why not?” 

“Phil  _ and  _ Wilbur  _ and _ Techno were all playing Monopoly, I didn’t wanna be left out!” 

“Didja win?” Tubbo asked him. 

“No, but I beat Wilbur.” 

“Nice.” Tubbo giggled at him. “Fine, you take my backpack, copy mine, I’ll try and make her feel better.” 

“You’re the best, Tubbo.” 

“I know.” Tubbo giggled even harder. Tommy playfully chucked a crayon at him, before grabbing both backpacks and heading to their desk. 

Tommy sat down, pulling Tubbo’s worksheet from his backpack, and began methodically copying down the problems. Happiness bubbled up in his chest, and he had to stop and take a breath to prevent a giggle from slipping out. Tubbo’s emotions impacted Tommy doubly, Tommy’s empath abilities latching on to the emotions Tubbo was sending out. Normally, it wasn’t an issue. Tommy was getting better and better at blocking out other’s unwanted feelings. 

But, when Tubbo was purposely pushing it out as much as he could, Tommy was pretty helpless. Not that he minded. The pure giddiness extended to his extremities, almost drowning out the anger radiating from their teacher. He kicked his feet as he finished copying the problems, and Tubbo returned to their table. 

“I hope that helped. I was sending out as much happy as I could.” Tubbo said, sliding into his seat. 

“Yeah, I could tell.” Tommy looked over at him. Now that his best friend was sitting right next to him and not across the room, the laugh he had been holding in tumbled out over his lips. He beamed at Tubbo, and Tubbo smiled right back, beginning to laugh as well. 

“I’m sorry! I’m sorry! I’m not very good at slowing it down!” He tried to whisper, but he was laughing so hard it didn’t work very well. 

“No, I know, it’s not your fault,” Tommy reassured him. Tubbo threw his arms around Tommy, and Tommy squeezed him back. After a minute or two, Tommy felt the happiness begin to dilute, and he pulled away, taking a deep breath. 

“Dude, that was only like two minutes!” Tommy said. 

“I know! I gotta tell Eret!” Tubbo responded. “That might be my record!” 

“I think so!” 

“Well, tell me how Mrs. Smith is feeling. Did it work?” Tubbo asked. Tommy focused onto Mrs. Smith. She was still a little upset, but not nearly as much as before. 

“It did! Nice!” Tommy held out his hand for a fist bump, and Tubbo returned it. 

“Awesome.” 

\---

Wilbur sat crisscrossed on top of the King’s dryer, folding Tubbo’s freshly dried clothes, and placing them into the basket on the table next to him. 

“Do you think there’s enough time to wash and dry this before Tubbo and Tommy get back from school?” Niki asked, wandering back into the laundry closet. In one hand, she held a hamper of clothing, in the other, Tubbo’s favorite stuffed bee. 

“Tubbo’s bee? Yeah, probably. Why?” He asked as Niki started up the washing machine, and began placing clothes in. 

“Because he refuses to let us wash it, he says he’s afraid Mr. Bee will drown in the washing machine. But, it’s honestly getting disgusting.” She grabbed the baking soda, covering Mr. Bee in the substance before submerging him in the water. Soap followed, and then she shut the washing machine. She grabbed an armful of clothes and began helping Wilbur with the folding. 

“Techno was the same way with Phil’s hat for a while, and it wasn’t even  _ his _ .” Wilbur laughed softly at the memory. They folded in silence for a bit before Wilbur spoke up.

“Do you think you’re gonna go to the football game Friday night?” 

“I wasn’t planning on it. But I’ll go if you go.” Niki responded. 

“Schlatt asked me to go. Said he was gonna have a small party afterward too. He told me to invite you.” 

“Do you know who’s going to be there?” 

“Not a lot of people. Probably some of the football people, like Sapnap, Big Q. Connor. Some cheerleaders. Puffy and Minx said they’ll be there too, so you’ll know people. It’ll be fun.” 

“Okay, I’ll ask Eret.” She smiled at him. “Hey, could you go outside and check on the stuff on the clothesline? I gotta bring this stuff to Tubbo’s room.” She gestured to the basket of now folded clothes sitting on the table. Wilbur nodded and slid off the dryer to head to the backyard. 

Wilbur smiled as he stepped out into the backyard. He loved fall, the crisp air, and the crunchy leaves. He stepped down the porch and wandered over to the clothesline, reaching his hand up to one of the towels and feeling it. It was still damp, so he went to go back inside. 

There was a whimper. He froze, looking for the source of the noise. 

He found it in a small fox, laying in the yard, it’s leg all but completely snapped in half. Eret’s backyard bordered the forest, and there was a hole in their fence, meaning animals often made their way into the backyard. However, they weren’t usually severely injured. Wilbur’s heart sunk looking at the fox. It was going to die if he didn’t do anything. 

So, against his better judgment, he lifted up the small fox, and brought it inside. He’d ask Niki if her powers worked on animals. If not, he’d call the animal shelter. It was shivering, so he set it by the fireplace, lit the wood the was already sitting inside, and rushed up the stairs to Tubbo’s room. 

“Niki!” He said, running into the room. 

“Oh! Will! You scared me! Is everything alright?” She asked, setting down the shirt she was holding into his drawer. 

“I-Um. Do your powers work on animals?” 

“I’m not sure. I could try it. Why?” 

“I found this fox in the backyard. Its leg was broken pretty badly. I kinda panicked and brought it in.”

“Oh!” Niki said. “Let me try.” 

Wilbur led her downstairs. They walked into the living room, but instead of a fox lying by the fire, it was a boy. He looked about their age, but was rather skinny, with his clothes torn up. His hair was orange, with a prominent streak of white toward the front. He had fox ears and a tail. His leg was bleeding onto the carpet, and he looked terrified. When Wilbur and Niki walked into the room, he scurried back (as best as he could with only one working leg). 

“Please don’t hurt me!” He yelled out. “I’ll get out, I’ll go away, don’t report me to the hunters!” 

“Woah Woah Woah!” Wilbur yelled out. “We’re not going to report you to the hunters! We’re Verges too!” 

“Huh?” The boy froze. 

“Yeah. We just wanna help you. Can Niki take a look at your leg?” 

He hesitated for a second. “Yeah” He mumbled under his breath. Niki slowly approached him. 

“This is going to hurt a little, I’m sorry.” She apologized. The boy nodded, and Niki placed her hand on his leg. Wilbur watched as it started putting itself back together. The boy screeched in pain and reached out for Wilbur. Wilbur grabbed his hand and let him squeeze as tight as he needed. 

“You’re gonna be limping for a few days, but after that, it should be perfectly fine.” She looked at him. 

He nodded at her. “Thank you so much, Niki.” 

“No problem.” She gave him a small smile. “What’s your name?” 

“Fundy. I’m Fundy.” 

“It’s nice to meet you, Fundy. I’m Wilbur. How old are you?” 

“15? I think? I’m pretty sure.” Wilbur nodded at him. 

“That’s cool. I’m 15 too. Do you want to shower, Fundy? I can get you some clean clothes.” 

“Could I?” 

“Of course! Here, I’ll let Niki show you where the bathroom is, and I’ll run to my house to get you some clothes, alright?” 

“Great. Thank you.” Fundy smiled at the both of them. Niki led him toward the bathroom, and Wilbur all but sprinted out of the house, and down to his own. He sighed in relief when he walked in and saw it empty. He glanced at the clock. 3:15. Techno was probably picking up the kids from school. Wilbur was grateful. He wanted to gather his thoughts before he had to explain the situation to anyone else. He ran into his room, rifling through his drawers for anything that would fit Fundy. He ended up with a sweater that was a little too small for him, black with some colored stripes around the chest, a white t-shirt, and a pair of gray sweatpants. He grabbed the target bag from the corner of his room, and ripped open both the underwear pack and the socks pack, grabbing a pair from each before bundling the clothes in his arms and rushing back. Phil would understand why Wilbur no longer had the clothes he had just bought him. He walked back into Niki’s house and made his way to the bathroom. 

“Fundy?” He called through the door. “I have clothes for you. Do you mind if I come in?” 

“No, go ahead!” Fundy called back. Wilbur walked in and set the clothes on the counter. 

“Wait, do you want me to cut a hole in the pants for your tail?” 

“No, it’s fine, I can get rid of the tail,” Fundy responded. Wilbur made a noise of confirmation and left the bathroom. 

“What should we do?” He asked Niki, flopping down on the couch next to her. 

“I don’t know, call Phil? He’d know what to do.” 

“No, we can’t call Phil. He’s got that meeting with the Teacher’s Union tonight. What about Eret?” 

“I can try?” Niki responded, pulling her phone out of her pocket. When Eret didn’t pick up, she called their work. 

“SMP Hair and Nails, how may I help you?” The receptionist’s voice came through the speaker. 

“Hi, is Eret King there?” Niki asked. 

“Yes, but they’re currently busy.” 

“This is their sister, can you hand them the phone please?” Niki asked. 

“Gimme a second.” The receptionist said. “Eret? Someone’s asking for you. Says she’s your sister?” It was quiet for a few seconds, and then Eret was on the line. 

“Niki? Is everything okay?” 

“Do you think you could come home early?” 

“Depends, is it an emergency? I’m braiding this girl’s hair right now, I can’t exactly leave unless someone else comes in to take over. What’s going on?” 

“Um, I can’t really explain it over the phone. Just, come home as soon as you can, okay?” 

“Yeah, okay. Love you.” 

“Love you too,” Niki said into the phone before hanging up. 

“So, we’re kind of on our own.” Wilbur sighed. 

“Yeah,” Niki responded. They sat in silence for a few minutes before Fundy padded out of the bathroom, old clothes in his hands. Now that he was dressed and clean, he looked much better. 

“What do you want me to do with these?” He held up his clothes. 

“Throw them away,” Niki said. The washer beeped, and Niki got up to swap the clothes out. 

“Fundy.” Wilbur patted the couch next to him, and Fundy sat down. “How are you feeling?” 

“A little better. This means a lot, seriously.” The boy smiled at him. 

“Do you have any family? Anyone else you were staying with?” 

“Not really. My mother got hunted a few days ago, it’s just me now.” Fundy said, quietly. 

“I’m really sorry.” Wilbur reached out to rub the boy’s shoulder. 

“It’s okay. It hasn’t really set in yet.” 

“Tell me about your mother,” Wilbur said. 

“Her name was Sally. She could shapeshift too, into a salmon. She didn’t talk much, but she was kind. And she always said she’d give up her life in a heartbeat if it meant I was safe. I didn’t really think it would actually come down to it.” 

“Yeah.” Wilbur nodded. 

“What about you? You know much about your mother?” 

“Not really. She was a teen mom. Had me when she was 15. Her name was Sam. She liked music. She got hunted when I was a baby. That’s about all I know.” 

“That sucks, I’m sorry,” Fundy said. 

“Yeah well, I was young. I don’t remember her at all. Not much of a loss to me.” 

“Fair enough.” Fundy shrugged his shoulders. “Well, you’ve gotta have a good father figure, at least. You’re too good at playing Dad to not have a good example.” 

“Huh?” Wilbur looked up at him. 

“Take me in when I’m hurt, give me clothes, have a heart to heart. You’re basically my dad already, Wilbur.” Fundy laughed. 

“Oh, hell no.” Wilbur laughed back, shoving him playfully. “I know Phil was doing the whole ‘raising kids’ thing when he was my age, but I am  _ not _ ready for that responsibility.” 

“Who’s Phil?” 

“My dad.” 

“See, I knew it!” Fundy laughed. Wilbur laughed too. His nerves calmed. Fundy was safe. They’d be okay. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> next update will be after christmas but before new years, so, merry christmas and happy kwanza 2 those who celebrate! (christmas is my fav holiday, im so excited haha)


	6. I'll Take My Shot in The Dark for You

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> IMPORTANT! READ THIS EVEN IF U NEVER READ NOTES OR SUMMARIES
> 
> starting today, this story will be updating with it's companion piece, "this dream isn't feeling sweet." ch 1 of tdifs is a prologue, but after that, the events in tdifs will be happening at the same time as the events in it's corresponding tofin chapter. it's really important that you read both tdifs AND this story, as you'll be missing out on important plot pieces if you don't, and certain developments might seem really sudden or not make sense.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> between this chapter, the interlude, and tdifs ch 1, y'all are sure getting a lot of mapleport today. this is probably the most i'll post in one sitting so enjoy it lol
> 
> i wanna put a quick trigger warning for recreational drug use, which happens at the end of the chapter. nothing bad happens but like...they do smoke. 
> 
> this is going to be the last mapleport update before new years. so, happy early new year everyone!! here's to hoping that 2021 isn't as bad as this hellhole of a year
> 
> chapter title is from BUZZER BEATER by adam melchor! enjoy the chapter!
> 
> my main tumblr/twitter: electribunny  
> my mineblr: vanilla-minecraft  
> noir's twitter/tumblr:h0n04rys3n10r

Techno yawned, trying not to zone out as his professor chattered on. Online school was a blessing, being able to work on his own time and watch all his lectures in 2x speed. But, sometimes he wished he had the guidance of a teacher to keep him focused. He grabbed a strand of hair, mindlessly messing with it. The pink was faded, and his roots were growing in. He’d have to ask Wilbur to help him with it again. 

He shook his head. “Focus, Techno.” He scolded himself. 

“This is important.” Prof. Green squeaked out through his laptop speakers. “Write this down in your notes.” Techno groaned, pressed pause, and went to go hunt down his notebook. He grabbed it, and returned to bed, only to find that his lecture wasn’t loading. He refreshed the page. 

He was met with the dinosaur. 

“Shit.” He mumbled to himself. He wandered over to Phil’s room, where the router was, and restarted it. He checked his phone. It still wasn’t working. He threw his head back and groaned. 

Hopefully the King’s wifi was still working. He had that quiz due at 3. 

He glanced at himself in the mirror of his room. He looked pretty bad. Normally, he wouldn’t care, but he liked to be at least semi-presentable when he left the house. Even if it was only to go three houses down the street. 

Besides, it was about 11. If Phil was home, he’d tell Techno to get dressed for the day. 

He swapped his sweatpants for a pair of black jeans, decided his red hoodie could stay, and threw his hair up into a bun with a black scrunchie. He put on some socks and his favorite Doc Martens, before cleaning his glasses on the sleeve of his sweater. He pulled the clear frames back onto his face, before glancing in the mirror. 

Better. He looked presentable, like an actual human who had responsibilities and shit, but still comfortable. He slid his laptop into his backpack, made sure he had everything he needed and walked out the door. 

Techno grabbed his keys from his belt loop, going to unlock the door when he noticed it was already unlocked. Wary, he opened it and took a step into the living room. 

There was a boy sitting on the couch, with fox ears protruding from his head, and a tail swishing behind him. He was wearing one of Wilbur’s old sweaters. 

“Who the fuck are you,” Techno asked. The boy jumped and scurried back. 

“I-um-uh.” His ears and tail poofed out of existence. His eyes widened. 

“Yo, chill. I’m a Verge too. Now answer the question.” 

“Oh. Um. My name’s Fundy? I live here now. See, Wilbur found me in the backyard a few days ago, and Niki took me in, and she fixed my broken leg, and then we talked to Eret and they agreed to adopt me so that’s happening and-” 

“Woah, slow down. I get it now.” Techno shut the door and flopped himself down onto the couch. “I’m Techno.” 

“Techno...Oh! You’re Wilbur’s brother!” 

“Yeah, he’s been talking about you at dinner. Anyway, the wifis down at home, so I’m gonna finish watching my lecture here.” Techno pulled his laptop out of his backpack. 

“Oh, that’s fine. Do you need me to leave? Am I gonna distract you?”

“Nah, I’ve got headphones.” 

“Cool. Well...It’s nice to meet you Techno.” Fundy’s ears and tail came back, and he shook them both out. 

“Likewise.” Techno nodded. He plugged in his headphones and hit play on the lecture. 

\---

Wilbur drummed his fingers on the desk, only half paying attention to his Chemistry teacher drone on. He was  _ really _ worried about Fundy. Eret had taken a couple of days off work to help the boy settle in, but it was his first day at the house alone. Hopefully, he would be fine, but Wilbur couldn’t help but worry anyway. 

He had spent the night with Niki and Fundy the night before. And in the middle of the night, Fundy had woken with a start, screaming about hunters and his mother. Will had ushered Niki back to bed, and held the shaking boy as he sobbed. That eventually turned into kneeling on the bathroom floor, stroking his hair as he threw up, and then sitting up with him on the couch in the living room, where the exit of the front door was clearly in view. As the sun was coming up, Fundy had finally fallen asleep in his arms, and Wilbur hummed to him, hoping to keep him placated while he slept. 

From what he could gather from Fundy’s panicked stammering, his brain was finally starting to process what had happened with the hunters. Wilbur was worried he would have another panic attack while he was gone, and no one would be there to help him through it. 

“Okay, I think that’s it! You can all go to your lab tables now!” Mrs. Gels announced to the class, and Wilbur got up, making his way to his table. He hoped that someone in his group was paying attention because the whole briefing had gone in one ear and out the other. 

“Hey, pretty boy.” Schlatt smiled at him as he walked up to the table. Wilbur just rolled his eyes and grabbed one of the four worksheets from the end of the table. 

“Dude, how many times do I have to tell you to stop calling me that.” 

“I’ll stop when your reaction stops being fucking hilarious.” 

“You’re the worst.” 

“I know.” Schlatt winked at him. Wilbur just laughed, shaking his head as he scribbled his name onto his paper. 

Schlatt was an unlikely friend. His father was a hunter. He was loud and a little abrasive. He was the star offensive tackler for the school’s football team, and he was immensely popular. Not the type of person Wilbur would associate himself with. 

And yet, they had gotten partnered for an English project their freshman year, and immediately hit it off. Him and Schlatt had just clicked. And somehow, Wilbur had earned the title of “Best Friend.” 

“Anyway, I got Minx to send me a copy of her lab from last period. So we can just do the fun shit without any of the math.” Schlatt said. He typed something on his phone, and a few seconds later, Wilbur’s phone dinged in his pocket. He fished it out and opened the photo from Schlatt. He began scribbling the answers onto his page. 

“Yo, Wilbur, dap me up, dude!” Sapnap said, dumping his armful of supplies onto the table. Wilbur reluctantly obliged his lab partner. 

“You football players are all so fucking strange,” Wilbur said. 

“Amen Wilbur!” Quackity said, sliding up next to Schlatt with his own set of materials. 

“Dude, you’re literally our team manager.” Sapnap pointed out. 

“Yeah, I just babysit you freaks. That’s the only association.” 

“So you  _ don’t  _ want to come to the party tonight?” Schlatt asked him. 

“Hell no, I never said that!” Quackity defended. The whole table immediately fell into laughter. Wilbur finished copying and slid his phone over to Sapnap, who began copying as well. 

“Speaking of, who all is going tonight?” Wilbur asked as he began setting up the lab. 

“Hold on, I’ve got a list.” Schlatt glanced at his phone. “Me, Quackity, Connor, Punz, Sapnap, Minx, Puffy, maybes on Karl, Niki, and you.” 

“Put me and Niki on as a yes,” Wilbur said. 

“Ah hell yeah, she said yes? She never wants to go to my parties.” Schlatt said, grabbing the striker and lighting his bunsen burner. 

“Yeah, she said yes. Told her Minx and Puffy would be there.” 

“Oh, so she doesn’t actually care about me. My heart is wounded.” 

“No, she’s just introverted.” Wilbur laughed, before lighting his own burner. 

“Why don’t you ever bring your brothers around to the parties?” Quackity asked. 

“Techno’s antisocial and Tommy is eight.” Wilbur deadpanned. 

“So? Eight years old is totally old enough to party.” Sapnap said. 

“No, Schlatt would give him some vodka as a joke and then panic after he passes out.” 

“Nah, you just gotta give him a little. Proportion it n’ shit. I’m smart, I could make it happen.” Sapnap said. 

“If you’re so smart why did they make you retake Chemistry?” Quackity quipped. 

“Hey, the problem was not with me! It was with-” Sapnap stopped himself as the pencil he was waving around caught on fire. He dropped it onto the desk, and Wilbur quickly used his powers to subtly put it out before it spread to the rest of the table. “Shit, I hope Mrs. G didn’t notice that,” Sapnap mumbled. 

“That. That is why this is his second year of Chemistry.” Schlatt said. Everyone laughed. 

\---

Wilbur slammed his locker shut, ready to head to the cafeteria when Schlatt rounded the corner of the hallway and grabbed his shoulder.

“Wilbur. Wilbur. Come smoke up with me.” 

“I don’t have anything on me.” He replied. 

“I have shit, I’ve got you.” Schlatt began leading them outside. 

“Alright, I’ll bite. How much do I owe you?” 

“I told you, I’ve got you. Don’t worry about the money.” They walked behind the portables where Minx was already waiting. Wilbur sighed in relief. Their friend group was normally pretty evenly split during lunch, half the group eating inside, and half the group eating at their smoke spot. But, he was glad most people had elected to stay inside. He didn’t want to deal with a big group. 

“Why?” 

“Because I know you’re fucking stressed about something. Let me help you out.” Schlatt sat down. “Hey, Minx.” 

“Hi, Schlatt. Hi Wilbur.” She waved to them with the hand that wasn’t holding her puff bar. 

“Hello, Minx.” Wilbur sat down, unzipping his bag and pulling out his lunch. 

“Shit, does anyone have a lighter?” Schlatt asked, digging through his backpack. 

“Nah, sorry.” Minx took a hit from her bar. 

“I don’t think I have one either,” Wilbur said. 

“Damn. Mind helpin’ us out, Will? Put those fire powers of yours to use?” Schlatt commented, casual as ever. Wilbur froze, anxiety spiking through his veins. 

‘I. Uh. Huh? What fire powers?” Wilbur stuttered out. 

“Relax, man. I’ve known for a while. I’m not gonna report you to the FHA. I wouldn’t do that to you. Maybe to Minx, though.” 

“You wouldn’t,” Minx responded. 

“Yeah, you’re right, I wouldn’t. Fuckin’ hate the FHA. I’d take you out myself.” 

“Wait, what? You’ve known, Schlatt? And Minx is a Verge?!” Wilbur sputtered out. 

“Yeah. I fuckin’ told this idiot that he’s gotta wait until you were ready to tell him, but when does he ever listen.” Minx shook her head. 

“Listen up, Kirby, he probably never was gonna tell us on his own, and I need a light!” 

“I told you to stop calling me that!” Minx complained. 

“Why Kirby?” Wilbur asked. 

“She can copy other people’s powers if they’re close enough to her. Like Kirby.” Schlatt smiled. 

“Fuck you,” Minx said, taking another hit of her bar. 

“Can you, Minx? That’s a pretty cool ability.” Wilbur said. It seemed like Schlatt had known about Minx for a while, to the point where she was comfortable joking about it, so his anxiety slowly began to seep away. 

“Yeah, check it.” She held out her hand, and a flame appeared. “Oh. I feel powerful. We’ve gotta hang out more often, Wilbur. I wanna mess around with this.” 

“I figured out how to make it like a flamethrower a few years ago. I’ll teach you if you want.” Wilbur offered. 

“Okay, that’s badass and all, but now that the moment is over, can one of you two magical fucks light me up?” Schlatt waved his joint around in the air. 

“Oh, yeah, sorry.” Wilbur touched his fingertip to the joint, setting it on fire. Once the flame took, he backed his hand away. 

“Damn, that’s so much faster than the lighter,” Schlatt said, bringing the joint to his mouth. He took a hit and sighed as he exhaled. “Wilbur, what do you want, man? I’ve got the full stock.” 

“I don’t really care, just nothing that’ll get me high. I’ve got that English test seventh period.” 

“Got it. Malboros good?” 

“Yeah, that’s fine.” Schlatt reached into his backpack, before pulling out the cigarettes. 

“You know what man? Just keep the pack.” Schlatt handed the whole thing to him. 

“Woah, thanks.” Wilbur pulled out a cigarette before putting the rest of the pack in the front pocket of his backpack. 

“Damn, Will, did you suck his dick or something? Schlatt’s normally stingy as shit.” 

“No I’m not!!” Schlatt defended. “Something has got our boy stressed as fuck, I’m just trying to be being a good friend here.” 

“Well, what happened?” Minx asked. 

Wilbur lit his cigarette and took a drag before responding. “Well, I found this boy in Niki’s backyard the other day. His name’s Fundy. He’s our age. He can shapeshift into a fox. He’s pretty funny.” Wilbur took another hit. “Anyway. His leg was broken almost clean off. He would’ve been fucked if Niki didn’t have her healing powers. He was pretty freaked at first. Turns out he and his mom got hunted a few days before. She died. He barely made it out.” 

“Shit.” Schlatt let out a low whistle. 

“Yeah. Eret said they would adopt him, it’s whatever. But, last night he had a pretty big panic attack about it, and now he’s home alone since he hasn’t been registered for school yet. I’m just worried about him having another one and no one being there to help him.” 

“That’s rough.” Minx cringed. 

“Yeah, fucking hell. Well, if he’s up for it, he’s always welcome to come to the party tonight. It might do him some good to get some decent social interaction.” Schlatt offered. 

“Maybe.” Wilbur shrugged. “I’ll ask him, see what he thinks.” 

The bell rang, and Wilbur put out his cigarette before accepting Schlatt’s hand and pushing himself off the ground. He felt a weight off his shoulders. He was glad to have such good friends. 


	7. interlude two

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> we have arrived upon the final era...tommy will be old enough to swear in the next era...pogchamp. 
> 
> now that the world had been solidly established, the plot is gonna start to really pick up next chapter. era 3 is the longest era by a huge margin, and it's where most of the actual main plot shit takes place. i'm so excited for you guys to see the story that noir and i have worked/are working so hard on. 
> 
> reminder to go read chapter one of "this dream isn't feeling sweet"! you're gonna have to read both from now on, but, they'll update at the same time, so it's basically double content for you all
> 
> enjoy the chapter!
> 
> my main tumblr/twitter: electribunny  
> my mineblr: vanilla-minecraft  
> noir's tumblr/twitter: h0n04rys3n10r

Phil took a deep breath as he pulled into the parking lot of the high school, trying to compose himself. It had been exciting when Techno graduated, they had thrown a party, but the only thing the online school had done was send his diploma in the mail. 

Phil was about to watch one of his sons  _ walk across the stage _ . He was sure he was going to cry, but he wanted to at least save it until the actual ceremony. 

“Well, are you ready, boys?” He asked Techno and Tommy. He somehow had the same amount of trouble wrangling his 20-year-old into looking presentable as he did his 10-year-old, but by some miracle, he managed to get both sons into short-sleeved button-up shirts and nice jeans. He wanted a picture. 

“Yeah!” Tommy said, unbuckling his seatbelt. Techno followed suit, and all three of them got out of the car. They met up with Eret, Tubbo, and Fundy, who were driving right behind them. 

“It’s a little weird to be back here,” Eret admitted. “I haven’t really been inside since  _ I  _ graduated.” 

“Can’t relate. Online school gang.” Techno said. 

“Hell yeah. Online school gang.” Fundy raised his hand for a high five, and Techno obliged. 

“We just get the fun part of graduatin’, we didn’t have to sit through the ceremony. Although, I suppose you gotta share your party with Niki.” Techno said. 

“I don’t mind,” Fundy responded as Phil handed over their tickets. They made their way out to the field and took their seats. Phil was practically bouncing in his seat as they started up. After what felt like forever, they finally got through all the speeches and began calling names. 

“Niki King.” The announcer called out. Eret rushed to film it on their phone. “Graduating Cum Laude, Niki is planning on attending a 2-year online college, where she will get the credentials required to one day open up her own bakery. Niki would like to thank her sibling Eret, her brothers Fundy and Tubbo, and the Watson family. Niki King.” Niki walked across the stage, accepting her diploma, shaking the principal’s hand, and leaning down so that her tassel could be flipped. Phil screamed for her. 

He waited patiently as they moved through the rest of the letters. When they got to the S’s, he handed his phone to Techno, ready to film. 

“Wilbur Soot-Watson.” Phil’s breath hitched. “Graduating Magna Cum Laude, Wilbur is planning on attending Northern Mapleport University, where he will be getting a 4-year degree in Music Composition and History. Wilbur would like to thank his father Phil, his brothers Tommy and Techno, and his ‘second family’, Eret, Niki, Fundy, and Tubbo. Wilbur Soot-Watson.” Phil jumped to his feet, yelling and clapping. His vision was blurred by the tears forming in his eyes, but he still got to watch his son accept his diploma. He looked so grown up, walking across the stage in his blue gown. He smiled as he shook the principal’s hand. 

Phil was glad that Will was toward the end. He wanted nothing more to be able to hug his son. The rest of the names went by in a blur, and suddenly, the closing statement was being said, the caps were being thrown, and the ceremony was over. 

“Dad! Dad! Phil!” Wilbur called out as soon as they found each other. Phil rushed forward, pulling his son into his arms. Wilbur was much taller than him, but Phil still lifted him up, just like he did when Wilbur was young. 

“Dad.” Wilbur grinned as they pulled apart. 

“Look at you. All grown up. My son.” Phil reached forward to hold Wilbur’s face in his hands. “I am  _ so  _ proud of you, Wilbur. And I know Sam would be, too. I wish your mother could see you right now. She’d be proud of you too.” 

“Thanks, Dad.” Wilbur’s voice trembled slightly. He gave Phil a watery smile. 

The moment was interrupted by Tommy rushing forward. 

“Wilbur!” Tommy ran into his brother’s arms. Will picked him up and spun him around, which caused Tommy to laugh and hold on tighter. 

“You’re a big man now,” Tommy said as he was set down. 

“Yeah. I’m a big man now.” Wilbur laughed. 

“Hey. Congratulations.” Techno said, placing a hand on Wilbur’s shoulder. 

“Thanks, Techno.” Wilbur smiled, before pulling his brother into a hug. Phil smiled at the sight. His sons. His heart burst with pride. 

“Hey, guys!” Eret called out. Phil turned around to see the King family heading toward them. 

“Niki! Congratulations!” Phil reached forward to hug her. 

“Thank you!” Niki smiled. 

“Do you guys want a family picture together? I can take it.” Phil offered. 

“Yeah, that would be lovely.” Eret smiled at him, before handing their phone over. The family grouped up, and Phil moved them around a bit, before taking a few photos. He handed the phone over to Eret, who looked them over. 

“Here, let me take a few of you guys.” They reached out for Phil’s phone. He gave it up and went to stand with his sons. They put Wilbur in the middle, with Phil to his right, and Techno to his left. Tommy stood in the front between Wilbur and Phil. Phil put one hand on Tommy’s shoulder, and the other on Wilbur’s. He saw Techno place his hand around Wilbur’s waist. 

“Okay, smile!” Eret called out. “3, 2, 1!” They took a few photos, before handing the phone back to Phil. 

He looked down to see the pictures. They were wonderful. Phil smiled at his phone. He would cherish those photos forever. 

_ end of era two.  _


	8. Either The Victims

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i havent updated this fic since last year...haha haha this is so original and funny no ones ever done this before haha /s 
> 
> sorry for the long time between updates! i took a break from writing to celebrate the holidays and tbh coming back to it has kinda been like pulling teeth. it took me 3 hours to write like 1.5k words. hopefully this goes away soom bc i really am so excited for this fic and it's future
> 
> noir drew the hunter uniforms, as well as the insignia for the fha! its super pog, and will help u guys visualize what we see in our heads a little better. i'll have it linked in the end notes
> 
> remember to go read the corresponding tdifs chapter! chapter title is from plastic flowers by the front bottoms. enjoy this chapter!
> 
> my tumblr/twitter: electribunny  
> my mineblr: vanilla-minecraft  
> noirs tumblr/twitter: h0n04rys3n10r

Wilbur blew his hair out of his face, trying to pay attention as his professor blabbered on about statistics. 

_ One more semester. One more semester and you can start taking classes on the things you actually came here to study. _

He tapped his pen on the table. He took some notes. He doodled in the margins of his paper. 

“And, I think that’s it for today! Email the TAs if you have any questions. Remember, your midterm is next week! Class dismissed!” 

“Fuckin’ finally,” Wilbur mumbled quietly, closing his notebook and sliding it into his backpack. He pulled his phone out of his side pocket and powered it on as he exited the lecture hall. As it came to life, it pinged with an incoming message. 

**Phil:** _ Hey, could you stop and pick up the groceries for tonight? They want me chaperoning the baseball game tonight and Techno’s working until 7. _

**Wilbur:** _ Chaperoning again? They should really be paying you overtime for how often they make you stay after school. _

**Phil:** _ I regret letting them transfer me to the high school. The middle school didn’t make me do shit.  _

**Wilbur:** _ You’re the one that wanted to be there for Tommy. Speaking of, does he need a ride home?  _

**Phil:** _ Nah, Tubbo’s dragged him to the art club meeting. I’ll probably have them hang out with me once it’s over and then drive em both home.  _

**Wilbur:** _ Cool. Send over the list, I’m gonna get in the car now. Love you.  _

Wilbur slid his phone into his pocket, before grabbing the keys to his and Techno’s car and unlocking it. He tossed his backpack into the back, hooked up his phone to the aux, and began the drive home. 

He was more than happy with his choice to attend college in North Mapleport. It was a good college, in the heart of the city, but was also fairly close to SMP. NMP was only about a 45-minute drive away, so Wilbur could live at home with his family, just how he wanted it. 

It was also quite a nice drive. With April finally arriving, flowers were blooming on the side of the road, the snow was melting, and the forest was beginning to spring back to life. 

He eventually made it to the grocery store. He hopped out of the car, locked up, and headed in. As he grabbed a cart, he pulled out his phone, checking the list that was sent to him. He smiled to himself when he saw that there wasn’t much. He hated the damn store. 

He had grabbed eggs, the blue Gatorade that Tommy liked, whipped cream, milk, and was in the process of comparing paper towel prices when he heard his name get called. 

“Huh?” He turned around to see the source of the noise. His blood ran cold when he saw it was a hunter, tall, with dirty blonde hair and green eyes. Wilbur took a deep breath and hoped he wasn’t about to get hunted in the middle of the fucking grocery store. That was a terrible way to go. 

He’d never be able to say goodbye to his family. The thought terrified him. 

“Wilbur? Watson-Soot, right?” The man said, sliding up next to him. 

_ Act casual.  _

“It’s Soot-Watson, but close enough. Do I know you?” 

“Oh! Yeah, sorry, I’m Dream! Techno and I were really good friends as kids.” Wilbur relaxed slightly. Hunts normally didn’t involve small talk. Once they were sure you were who they thought you were, they usually just went for it. 

“Oh! Yeah, yeah! I didn’t recognize you with the uniform on.” 

“Really?” Dream laughed. “I just graduated from the Academy. This is my first week back in SMP. Hasn’t changed much in the five years I’ve been gone.” 

“You just graduated? Congratulations! You’re right, it really hasn’t changed.” 

“I might swing by for dinner to see how Techno’s doing if that’s alright. You guys still live in the same place?” Dream asked. 

“We do. I’ll let Phil know you’re coming tonight, he’d be glad to set out an extra plate. We’ll be eating late though, Techno has work until 7.” 

“Sounds great! See you tonight!” 

“Yeah. See ya.” Dream wandered off, and Wilbur relaxed. Dream didn’t know. He was fine. He should probably text Phil, though. 

**Wilbur:** _ Remember Dream? Techno’s old friend? He’s back in SMP. Just graduated from the FHA. Kinda invited himself over for dinner tonight.  _

**Phil:** _ Well. Shit.  _

**Wilbur:** _ I know, right? Almost had a heart attack when he walked up to me.  _

**Phil:** _ I’ll let Tommy know. I’ve gotta go now, they want me at the snack bar.  _

**Wilbur:** _ Alright, I’ll tell Techno.  _

Wilbur finished his shopping, checked out, and quickly packed the car to head home. He tapped the steering wheel, nervous. Their home was supposed to be their safe space, and there was going to be a hunter in it. What if Tommy slipped up and mentioned how someone else was feeling? What if Will accidentally set something on fire? What if Fundy came over with his ears out? 

He pulled into the driveway and went to text Techno, before remembering that his brother never checked his phone during work. He sighed, and idled the car, getting out to put the groceries away. He stuck the perishables in the fridge and left the rest on the counter. He hopped back in the car and drove off to Techno’s work. 

“Welcome to the USPS, how can I-Oh, hey Will.” Techno nodded to him as he walked into the building. Wilbur hopped over the counter to the back. 

“How many times do I have to tell you to use the gate?” Techno asked, readjusting some papers on the counter that had moved. 

“But it’s on the other side of the room.” Wilbur grabbed the chair next to Techno and sat down.

“This room is literally like ten feet wide.” 

“Still.” 

“Anyway, what do you need? Why are you here bothering me instead of at home bothering Tommy?” 

“He’s at the art club meeting. Besides, I’ve got shit to tell you.” 

“It couldn’t have waited until my shift was over?” Techno raised an eyebrow at him. 

“No, it’s time-sensitive. Remember Dream?” 

“My best friend as a kid?” 

“Yeah, him. I ran into him at the store today.” 

“I thought he didn’t live in Mapleport anymore.” 

“Apparently he was off at the FHA. It’s his first week back.” 

“Oh.” Techno froze. He looked hurt. Wilbur cringed internally. He probably should’ve broken the news more gently. It probably wasn’t fun to hear that someone who was so important to you for so many years was a member of the organization that wanted you dead. 

“Yeah.” Wilbur sighed. “I’m sorry.” 

“Ah, no, don’t worry about it.” Techno shook his head. “Haven’t talked to him for like 8 years anyway.” 

“Still. He was your best friend. It’s okay to be upset about this.” 

“I should’ve expected it, they’ve got some family legacy shit going on. It’s whatever.” Techno shrugged. Wilbur knew he was lying, but he also knew Techno wasn’t really a fan of talking about his emotions. “Anyway, what about him?” 

“Well, he’s coming over for dinner tonight. Said he wanted to see how you were doing. I wanted to warn you.” 

“Why’d you invite him to dinner?” 

“He invited himself!” Wilbur defended. 

“Alright, that’s fair. Thanks for telling me.” 

“Yeah, no problem.” The door swung open, and someone walked in. 

“Okay Will, you gotta get out now. I’ve actually got a job to do.” 

“Yeah, yeah, just say you don’t wanna spend time with me and get on with it.” Wilbur joked. “Hey, I brought the car, do you want it? I don’t mind getting the bus home.” 

“Nah, Skeppy said he’d take me tonight.” Techno waved him off with a smile. “Now get lost.” 

“I hate you.” Wilbur laughed before leaving. (He considered hopping the counter for a moment, but took the time to walk across the room to the gate. He was such a good brother.) 

\---

Phil sighed, locking up the snack bar. He clipped the key to his keyring, to be given to the baseball coach the following morning, and glanced across the empty field, where Tubbo and Tommy were sitting on the bleachers, smiling and laughing. 

6 months. 6 months old. That was how old Tommy had been the last time he had a serious encounter with a hunter. Tommy didn’t remember the group home. He didn’t remember the incident where they lost the car. He didn’t remember the year they spent on the streets, traveling toward a safe haven that maybe wasn’t even real. 

He knew that Tommy knew the hunters were dangerous. He knew that Tommy heard his brothers sometimes crawl into Phil’s room at night, shaking and crying about them. He knew Tommy saw how Fundy still flinched at any loud noise. But Tommy’s mind was not plagued with first-hand encounters. His youngest son had yet to experience a hunt. It made Phil’s heart swell with happiness to watch Tommy grow up, and not have his main worry in life be the FHA. 

He was foolish to think it would last forever. 

He put on a brave face and walked to the boys. 

“Hey, kiddos! All ready to head home?” 

“Yeah! Hey, can Tubbo come over for dinner tonight?” Tommy asked, getting up and swinging his backpack over his shoulder. 

“Ah, no, not tonight buddy, sorry. We’ve got a guest coming.” 

“So?” 

“He can’t. I’ll tell you more when we get home, alright? Now come on, let’s go.” Phil walked off, Tommy and Tubbo close behind him. He saw the boys share a worried glance, and quickly looked away, pulling out his car keys and unlocking the car. The ride home was silent. Phil only spoke to wish Tubbo a farewell after they pulled into the driveway. He watched the boy run home and didn’t turn to enter his own house until he saw Eret welcoming Tubbo in. 

“Phil? What’s going on?” Tommy asked, hesitantly. 

“Come on, let’s go sit on the couch.” Phil grabbed Tommy’s shoulders, leading him to the living room. 

“Phil?” Tommy asked again as they sat down. 

“You probably don’t remember him, but when Techno was younger, he had a friend named Dream.” 

“Yeah, he’s the tall one in all the old pictures of Techno and his friends.” 

“He is, you’re right. He’s going to come over for dinner tonight.” 

“What’s so bad about that?” 

“He’s a hunter now, Tommy.” 

“Oh.” Tommy looked a little conflicted. Phil understood. It was a new thing for him. 

“I know you know this already, but you can’t even  _ hint _ that we’re Verges. He’ll kill us all.” 

“I know.” Tommy nodded. 

“And, be a little lenient toward your brothers tonight, okay? This probably going to bring back some unpleasant memories for them.” 

“What unpleasant memories?” 

_ “Phillip, don’t ever forget, I love you so much. Now run. Run!” “Hi, Phil who is eleven! I’m Techno who is four! Did the brown clothes guys take your parents too?“ “Hey Phil, if something ever happens to me, you’d take care of Wilbur, right?” “Will someone take my baby! Will someone please save my baby! Please!” “I’m sure it’s a group of Verges living out of this car. They gotta come back eventually, we just wait it out. Easy hunt.”  _

“Phil? Phil?” 

“Oh, sorry Toms.” Phil tried to smile at him. 

“Kinda lost ya for a second there.” Tommy laughed, although it sounded empty. 

“You don’t want to know what happened, you really don’t.” Phil pulled Tommy into his arms. He stuck his face into Tommy’s hair. “You’re so important to me, Tommy. I love you so much.” 

“Phil, you’re scaring me.” Tommy pulled back furrowing his eyebrows. 

“Sorry. Sorry. Hey, would you go tell Wilbur that he’s gotta help make dinner tonight?” 

“Yeah.” Tommy took the out, running off. 

Phil waited until the footsteps stopped pattering up the stairs to bury his head in his hands and cry. 

\---

“Hey, while we’re here, mind sliding this into 1803’s mailbox?” Skeppy asked, grabbing an envelope from his bag and handing it to Techno. 

“Sure. Thanks for the ride, man.” 

“Yeah, anytime you’re on my route! It’s the company’s gas money, not mine.”

“I like the way you think.” Techno smiled, before hopping out of the mail truck. He walked down the street, stopping only to place the letter in its proper box before making his way to his house. 

A car he didn’t recognize was in the driveway. He didn’t think his anxiety about the situation could get any worse. He hesitated at the door, before finally pushing it open. 

“I still can’t believe it! Last time I saw Tommy he was like two feet tall! This is crazy!” 

“He still is like two feet tall, I don’t know what you’re talking about.” 

“Hey, fuck you, I’m a big man!” 

“Language, Tommy.” Phil looked up as Techno walked into the living room. “Techno! Welcome home! How was work?” 

“Pretty decent. It was slow, that was nice.” 

“Techno.” Dream said, getting up from the couch. “It’s been a while, huh?” 

Techno’s stomach dropped. It was one thing to hear about his former best friend, it was another to see him, same dirty blonde hair and piercing green eyes, standing in his living room wearing a hunter’s uniform. He tried to ignore the thought and accepted the handshake that was offered to him. 

“It has. The FHA, huh? That’s pretty impressive.” 

“Well, Phil here told me you’re in graduate school right now. That’s pretty impressive too.” 

“Oh, yeah. I want to be a librarian.” 

“You need a masters for that?” Dream asked, stepping back. Techno couldn’t help but laugh softly. It was so like him. If he closed his eyes, he could relish in the familiarity of his friend and pretend he wasn’t in mortal danger. 

“Yeah, you do. It’s a lot more than organizing books.” 

“I guess.” Dream laughed, settling back into the couch. 

“Well, Techno, if you wanna go change out of your work uniform, we can eat! The lasagna is already done.” Phil announced.    
  


“Oh, I hope I wasn’t making you guys wait for too long.” 

“Nah, it’s only been like five minutes, you’re fine.” Wilbur chimed in. 

“Got it. I’ll be down soon.” Techno said, before walking upstairs to his room. He quietly shut the door, before sliding down to the ground. He took a moment to focus on his breathing and gather himself. 

After a minute, he got up. He brushed out his two braids, pulling his hair into a low ponytail instead. He changed out of his work clothes and took out his contacts. He reached for his glasses case, and grabbed the plain black pair, sliding them onto his face. He took Phil’s feather, from all those years ago, and ran his hand over it. He remembered the night he chose the feather, carefully searching through Phil’s wings for the best one to take. 

His brain unhelpfully reminded him that that was the night before he had met Dream. 

He put the feather back, steeled himself, and made his way down the stairs. The living room was empty, so he made his way to the dining room. He made eye contact with Will as he sat down, an uncertain look on both their faces. 

“Well!” Phil said with a smile that Techno could tell was fake. “Let’s eat!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> https://h0n0r4rys3n01r.tumblr.com/post/639267688875769856/the-hunters-uniform-that-i-designed-for-the
> 
> if the link is broken, you can go right to his art blog at h0n0r4rys3n01r. i also have it reblogged to my mineblr


	9. Here's the Thing

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> me after the last few streams be like *sobs and holds my happy family sbi au to my chest*
> 
> anyway i start school again on monday. updates might slow down, they might not, depends on how heavy my workload is. the most ill ever go between updates is one week but idk. its my senior year, school comes first
> 
> be sure to read the corresponding tdifs chapter! title is from sweet hibiscus tea by penelope scott! enjoy the chapter!
> 
> my main tumblr/twitter: electribunny  
> my mineblr: vanilla-minecraft  
> noir's tumblr/twitter: h0n04rys3n10r

The ringing of his phone snapped him out of his sleep, and then promptly began to split through his skull. Groaning, he fumbled with it, sliding it on and pressing it to his ear. 

“Technobladeeeee.” 

“Skeppyyyyy.” 

“You gotta take my shift man, I feel like shit.” Techno finally opened his eyes and regretted it the second he did. He shut them again. 

“You sound like shit, too.” Techno laughed. His throat screamed. 

“Thanks. I know.” 

“You gotta find someone else to do it though, I’m sick too.” 

“Fuckkk,” Skeppy whined. “Who do you think gave it to us?”

“I don’t care. I’m going back to sleep. Seeya.” Techno hung up before Skeppy could respond, and buried his head back into his pillow. He quickly fell asleep. 

\---

Tommy tossed his backpack under his desk, before sliding into his seat. He immediately leaned back, resting his head on Tubbo’s desk. 

“Tommy. I was writing something.” Tubbo scolded, although Tommy could tell there was no malice behind it. 

“So?” Tommy grinned up at him. Tubbo sighed and set down his pencil. “I’ve got something to tell you. You know Derek?” 

“That asshole in your Algebra class?” Tubbo asked. He rested his head in one of his hands, and the other reached out for Tommy’s head. Tommy felt fingers running through his hair. 

“Yeah, him! So, anyway, Miss H put us into random pairs for the last ten minutes of class, and of course, with my luck, I get stuck with him! So I’m trying to be civil n shit, whatever. We’re going through the problems, not talking. And he gets stuck on one. He was actin’ like he wasn’t, but I’ve got mind powers n shit, I knew he was confused. And Tubbo, I’m trying to be nice, good guy Tommy, so I ask him if he needs help! And you know what he fucking does!” 

“What?” There’s laughter in Tubbo’s voice, as he raises an eyebrow at Tommy. 

“He looks me right in the eyes and goes ‘I don’t need help from you. You’re stupid.’ So you wanna know what I did?” 

“What did you do?” 

“I look at him right back, eye contact n shit, and go ‘You’re calling me stupid? You’re literally taking _Earth_ _Science._ ’ And Tubbo, the man got _pissed_. I was sure he was gonna start swinging.” 

“Well, what happened?” 

“The bell rang.” 

“Really?” Tubbo laughed. “That was so anticlimactic. I was expecting a fight or something!” 

“Well, I could’ve taken him if a fight happened. I’m a big m-” Tommy’s gum slid down his throat and he shot up, coughing. He caught the gum before it fell on the floor, and swung around to face Tubbo, who cringed at him. 

“Gross,” Tubbo commented, reaching into his backpack and grabbing a tissue. Tommy accepted it, wadded his gum inside, and shot for the trashcan. He cheered when he made it in. 

“So, what was that about you being a big man?” Tubbo asked, smiling. 

“Oh, fuck you.” Tommy flipped him off, before reaching for Tubbo’s water bottle. Their teacher walked in as he took a swig. 

“Hello, 2nd-period Biology!” Mr. Lake walked in. “Sorry I’m late, I was sorting out some things with the office. We’ve got a new student coming in sometime this period. Now, listen up, class. He’s here with us now because he was bullied at his old school for his vitiligo. So, if I catch any of you saying  **anything** to him about it, it’s straight to the principals, got it?” The class muttered out their agreement, and he continued. “Now, you’ve just got a worksheet today, feel free to work in groups if you want. It’s due by the end of the period, but it shouldn’t take that long.”

“Tubbooooo, work with me.” Tommy spun around in his chair so he was facing his friend.

“Tubbooooo, do all the work for me” Tubbo mocked, but made no move to shoo Tommy away. They both thanked Mr. Lake as he handed them their worksheets, and began half working, half chatting. 

After about 10 minutes, the classroom door opened, and Tommy glanced up in curiosity. It was the principal, and an extremely tall boy, who looked incredibly uncomfortable. His skin was perfectly split down the middle, one half pitch black, the other half being so pale it might as well have been white. Fluffy brown hair sat atop his head, and brown eyes nervously glanced around as he was led to the front of the classroom. Out of curiosity, Tommy focused on his emotions. 

He had to quickly suppress his gasp of fear. He quickly looked around, focusing on some random girl who was laughing in order to get rid of it. Even with that, his fear was so strong that Tommy could still feel it, like a weight on his chest. The only time he had ever felt fear like that was in fleeting seconds, with his family, when they walked past a hunter in public. 

“Tommy, what’s wrong?” Tubbo whispered toward him. 

“That guy is definitely not human,” Tommy whispered back. 

“What? Huh?” Tubbo asked, but Mr. Lake started talking then. 

“Class! This is our newest student! Tell us about yourself, what’s your name, where you from?” 

“Uh. Um. Hi. I’m Ranboo. I’m fourteen. I mov-I moved here from. Um. Tokia, and. Yeah.” Ranboo nodded, looking like he’d rather be anywhere other than where he was standing. 

“Tokia! Wow! That’s far!” Mr. Lake commented. “Anyone with an empty seat near them, mind having Ranboo sit with you?” Despite never being the type of person to willingly talk to new people, Tommy shot up his hand. He needed to make sure Ranboo knew he had people like him, classmates he could trust. 

“Tommy, what the hell!” Tubbo whispered to him as Ranboo began walking over. 

“I’ll explain during passing period! I had to do it! Just, he’s freaked the fuck out. Try and calm him down, okay?” 

“Okay.” Tubbo took a deep breath. “I trust you.” 

“Um. Hi.” Ranboo gave them a small smile as he slid into the seat next to Tubbo. 

“Hey! I’m Tommy, and this is Tubbo.” Tommy made sure to give Ranboo his most reassuring smile and stuck his hand out. Ranboo took it and shook it. 

“Hey man.” Tubbo smiled at Ranboo too. Tommy reached out and grabbed Tubbo’s hand, rubbing circles with his thumb in a comforting motion. A few seconds later, he began to feel warm contentedness, although he knew most of the energy was being directed toward Ranboo. 

“You don’t have to be afraid here, man. You’re safe.” Tommy tried his best to reassure him without downright freaking him out. 

“Huh?” Ranboo looked at him. 

“You’re stiff as a board, it’s obvious you’re nervous. Don’t be. Tommy only bites sometimes.” Tubbo joked, and Ranboo let out a soft laugh. 

“Um. Thanks.”

“Yeah, no problem! Let me see your schedule!” Tubbo reached out his free hand toward Ranboo, who dug into his bag and passed the paper over. 

“Ugh, health first period. Careful, Mrs. Slate is a bitch. This class is pretty chill, we don’t do much. Oh! You have geometry with Phil! You’ll like him, he’s nice.” 

“Phil?” Ranboo raised an eyebrow at him. 

“Mr. Watson, sorry.” Tubbo corrected. 

“Phil’s my dad,” Tommy explained. “Tubbo’s right, you’ll like him. Geometry as a freshman. That’s impressive.” 

“Thank you.” Ranboo smiled at them, and thankfully he was starting to look more comfortable. After a while, the bell rang, and they walked out of the classroom, dropping their papers off in the basket as they did. 

“Well, Ranboo, it was really nice meeting you!” Tubbo waved. 

“Likewise.” Ranboo grinned at Tubbo. 

“Ranboo, do you want me to show you where your next class is? I need to talk to Phil anyway.” Tommy offered. 

“Oh, yeah. That would be nice.” 

“Alright. Bye, big man.” Tommy reached forward to hug Tubbo, and then they were wandering off. 

“You busy after school?” Tommy asked, gently elbowing over some girl standing in the middle of the hallway. 

“Not really. Why?” Ranboo raised an eyebrow at him. 

“Wanna hang out?” 

“I can ask,” Ranboo responded. 

“Great.” Tommy grinned at him, before opening the door to Phil’s classroom. He waltzed in, Ranboo close behind. 

“Tommy! What are you doing here?” Phil spoke up from where he was sitting at his desk. 

“Oh, I was showing Ranboo where your classroom was. He’s new here. We’re friends n shit now.” 

“Ranboo! I was told about you! I see you’ve met my son.” Phil got up and walked up to them. 

“I did! Tubbo too. They’re very nice.” 

“I’m glad you think so.” 

“Phil, if Ranboo’s parents say yes, can we hang out after school?” Tommy asked. 

“Well, I don’t see why not.” Phil smiled at the two of them. The bell rang, and Ranboo jumped. 

“Oh, shit,” Phil muttered under his breath. “Class! This is Ranboo, he’s new here. Now, get out your notebooks and solve the problem on the board while I write Tommy a hall pass.” Phil showed Ranboo his seat, and then Tommy walked back to Phil’s desk with him. 

“Oh, Phil, I was gonna ask, did I leave my student ID in here the other day? I can’t find it.” Tommy said as Phil began scribbling a late pass for him. 

“You did. It’s in my wallet. Pop by at lunch and I’ll grab it for you. You’ve got Mrs. Slate this period, right?” 

“Yeah.” Tommy nodded, and the paper was being placed into his hands. “Thanks, Phil.” 

“It’s not a problem. Now get to class. I love you.” 

“Love you too, Phil,” Tommy said, and then left. 

Phil hadn’t written a time on the hall pass, so Tommy did a lap or two around the school before going to class. Tubbo wasn’t lying, Mrs. Slate really was a bitch. 

\---

A soft knock woke him from his sleep, and Techno groaned. 

“Go away, Phil.” 

“It’s not Phil, it’s Dream.” The door opened to reveal his friend, standing in the doorway. 

“Dream?” Techno shot up at that. “What the fuck are you doing here?” 

“My roommate is friends with Skeppy. Heard you were both sick. He insisted I bring you some soup.” Dream held up a Tupperware bowl. 

“Oh. Thanks.” Techno mumbled out. 

“Yeah, no problem.” Dream walked in and set the bowl down. “Dude, no offense, but you look like shit. Has anyone been in here to check up on you?” 

“Nah, Phil’s at work, and Wilbur and Tommy are in class. They don’t even know I’m sick.” Techno grumbled out. His throat ached. 

“Well. Uh. Do you...need anything?” Dream hovered, looking awkward. 

Techno would normally die before asking anyone for help, especially a hunter, but he really was miserable. 

“Yeah. Um. Could you braid my hair? It’s in the way, it’s fucking annoying.” 

“Yeah! Yeah. Sure.” Dream nodded, before slinging off his crossbow and setting it on Techno’s desk chair. He felt a little safer. 

“Here.” Techno grabbed a brush and a hair tie from his bedside table and sat up straighter as he handed them to Dream. 

“Thanks.” Dream said, before settling down on Techno’s bed. 

It was silent, Dream slowly making his way through Techno’s hair. It was nice, in his hazy, illness ridden brain. He closed his eyes, enjoying the attention as the knots were worked out of his locks. Every once in a while, Dream’s cool hands would hit the back of his neck, which felt nice. Once his hair was all brushed, he began pulling it into a sloppy braid. It wasn’t very good, he probably didn’t have much experience, but Techno appreciated it nonetheless. Once it was done, Dream handed the brush back to Techno. 

“Hey, um. Thanks, man.” Techno said, setting the brush back on his table. 

“Yeah. Yeah. No problem. Get better soon, okay?” Dream said. Techno nodded. Dream grabbed his bow and left. 

_ That was fucking weird.  _ Techno thought, before laying down and going back to sleep. 

\---

“So, Ranboo’s definitely a Verge,” Tubbo commented as they walked to the cafeteria together. 

“Yeah, no shit Sherlock. Why do you think I had him sit with us?” Tommy said. “I told you I had a good reason.” 

“You were right!” Tubbo put his hands up in surrender. 

“I wonder what he can do?” Tommy asked as they entered the lunchroom. 

“I don’t know.” Tubbo shrugged, looking around. “Where even is he, though, I don’t see him anywhere?”

“I’ll just text him,” Tommy said, pulling out his phone and opening his newest contact. 

**Tommy:** _ where are you, big man? _

**Ranboo:** _ hiding in the bathroom. too many people in the cafeteria.  _

**Tommy:** _ totally understandable. which bathroom? we’ll come get you _

**Ranboo:** _ the one in the c wing? I think? the one around the corner from mr. lake’s room.  _

**Tommy:** _ that’s the b wing, but close enough. see you soon.  _

“He’s hiding in the bathroom. Says it’s too crowded here.” 

“He’s kind of right, to be fair. Half the school is sitting on the floor.” Tubbo commented. 

“Whatever, I told him we’d go to him.” 

“Works for me!” Tubbo smiled, doing a 180. Tommy followed, and they made their way to the bathroom. 

“Big Man Ranboo!” Tommy yelled as they walked in. 

“Augh!” Ranboo gasped from where he was sitting on the floor. Then, the next thing Tommy knew, Ranboo was standing at the other end of the bathroom. 

“I. Um. Ah.” Ranboo began stuttering, flustered. 

“Dude, you’re fine. We’re Verges too.” Tommy said, sitting on the edge of one of the sinks. 

“Tommy!” Tubbo scolded. “You just did that in the worst way possible! The guy is probably terrified!” 

Tommy could feel the nerves radiating off of Ranboo. “Yeah, you’re right, he is. Although, I think teleportation is cool as fuck. Being an empath is kind of boring. You lucked out, Ranboo. But you should probably break the habit of doing it every time you’re scared.” 

“Yeah. Yeah. You’re right. I probably should.” Ranboo’s voice trembled. “You’re Verges too though? What are the odds?” 

“I don’t know.” Tubbo laughed. “But you’re safe with us, promise.” 

“Anyway, do you guys wanna have this conversation in Phil’s room? I’m not too fond of hanging out in the bathroom.” Tommy piped up. 

“Oh, no, that’s fine,” Ranboo said, and Tubbo agreed. So the trio left and made their way to Phil’s room. 

“Hello, boys! Tommy, let me grab your ID!” Phil said, smiling at them as they entered. 

As soon as the classroom door was shut and Tommy confirmed that the four of them were the only ones in the room, he turned to Phil. 

“Phil! Holy fucking shit! Ranboo can teleport! How cool is that!” He announced. 


	10. Glass Half Full

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> life advice with bunny. dont go to fucking college /j. i have done applications this week. i have done fafsa this week. i have done cal grant this week. i am so tired. this is why the update took so long. sorry. im gonna be an english major, if anyones curious
> 
> be sure to read the corresponding tdifs chapter (it's super plot heavy). chapter title is from rot by pup. enjoy the chapter!!
> 
> my tumblr/twitter: electribunny  
> my mineblr: vanilla-minecraft  
> noir's tumblr/twitter: h0n04rys3n10r

“So, the lady at the animal shelter said she’d give me 60 bucks if I went over there sometime and cut the mats out of all of the cats’ fur. And I was thinking I’d take Tubbo with me and then split the money with him.” Tommy was sitting on one of the desks in Phil’s classroom, and he swung his feet absentmindedly. 

“I think that sounds like a wonderful idea, Tommy,” Phil said. Tommy’s phone went off as he talked, and he picked it up. 

“Ranboo’s bus just got here, he wants to know where I am,” Tommy announced. “Oh, I should take him to the animal shelter too! Anyway, I’m gonna go say hi to him. And figure out where the hell Tubbo went. Bye, Dad!” Tommy got up and went to leave. 

“Not so fast, Kiddo.” Phil reached out and grabbed his shirt, before pulling Tommy down to his level so he could kiss his forehead. “Damn kid, when did you get so tall?” 

“I’ve always been a big man.” Tommy quipped. 

“Yeah, yeah. Just don’t forget who changed your diapers as a baby.” Phil laughed. “Now go see your friends. I love you, Toms.” 

“Love you too, Phil.” Tommy smiled at him, before leaving. Alone in his classroom, Phil loaded up some songs on his laptop and hit play. He grabbed his lesson plan, and went to the front of the classroom, writing down the agenda for the day on the board for his students. 

**Period 1: AP Statistics**

**Parameters v. Statistics**

**Periods 2+3: Geometry**

**Proofs Continuation**

**Period 4: Algebra Tw**

Phil was interrupted by a knocking at his door. 

“It’s unlocked, come in!” He called. 

“Mr. Watson, can I hang out in here until school starts? Ophelia is being a bitch and won’t let me sit with anyone at our table.” 

“Language, Annie. And yeah, you’re always welcome here, just make sure you prop the door open.” He gave her a warm smile before returning to his writing. “So, why won’t Ophelia let you sit at your normal table?” 

“Because Jacob dmed me on Insta last night and asked me to send him pics, and I said no, because like, that’s my best friend’s boyfriend, what the hell, you know? And then he wouldn’t drop it, so I blocked him, and he messaged me on Snap and asked  _ again _ . And so I’m trying to be a good friend, whatever, and I take screenshots and send them to her. And today I come in and she’s mad at me because I was talking to Jacob! Even though I wasn’t! He was talking to me!” Annie huffed, setting down her backpack and sitting down in her normal seat. Phil didn’t want to admit to her that he didn’t have any idea what she was talking about. 

“Oh. Well, I’m sorry that happened. I’m sure she’ll come around eventually.” 

“Yeah. And if she doesn’t apologize by lunch I have receipts of her saying that she’s got a crush on Conner L. and is only dating Jacob to make him jealous. So it’s whatever. Anyway! People are saying that one of the teachers is secretly a Verge. Micah said it was just a rumor, but she also said the thing with Landon and Sophie was a rumor and it wasn’t so I don’t know how much I can trust her. I think the Verge is Mrs. Slate. It’s probably why she’s such a bitch, she’s trying to scare off the hunters.” Phil tried to ignore the way his blood ran cold at that. He knew the kids started rumors all the time, but he did  _ not  _ need them gossiping about Verges in the faculty. 

“I think Micah’s right here, kid. It’s just a rumor.” Phil tried to act nonchalant. 

“Well, for the record, Connor K. said he thought it was you, and I shut that down real quick. I think he might’ve just been saying it to mess with me because he started laughing afterward. There’s no way it’s you, you’re too nice. You’re my favorite teacher, you know? You treat us like people instead of little kids which is cool. Anyway, you are 100% off of our list of suspects.” 

“Oh. Well. Um. Thank you.” Phil tried his best to smile at her as he finished the board and walked back to his desk. 

“Kiki says that Tommy almost got into a fight a couple of days ago.” 

“Huh?” He looked up at her, shocked. 

“Yeah, she’s in the same math class as him and Derek. And so Mrs. H put them into a group together, and apparently he called Tommy stupid, so Tommy made fun of him for being in Earth Science, and they were about to start going at it when the bell rang.” 

“Well.” Phil laughed softly. “How about this, you worry about your family, and I worry about mine, okay?” The bell rang as Phil talked. 

“Yeah, okay, that works. Anyway, thanks for letting me hang out! You’re a real one, Mr. Watson.” Annie grabbed her bag and went to walk out. 

“I’ll see you next period, Annie. Have a good day!” He called out to her as she left. 

His wings twitched from underneath his coat. He sighed. If the kids were going to start a hypothetical Verge hunt, he was just glad to be off the list. 

\---

“And she expects me to drive three towns over, to her house, just so she can taste the cupcakes! Like, there’s a reason I’m doing school online, it’s because I don’t want to travel!” Niki threw her hands up as they walked to the house. “I tried to tell her that, but she wouldn’t listen. So anyway, I need to go to Logstedshire this weekend, if you want to come with me.” 

“Oh, yeah, of course, that sounds like a lot of fun. You know, we spent a couple of days there while Tommy was a baby. He wouldn’t stop crying. We still have no idea why.” Wilbur laughed softly, opening the door. 

“No, Fundy, this was Marissa, not Melissa,” Eret said.

“Why would they hire someone named Marissa and another named Melissa? That’s so dumb. Oh, Wilbur, Niki, hi!” Fundy turned to acknowledge them. 

“Hey, guys!” Wilbur smiled and waved. Niki followed suit. 

“Guys, sit down, you’ll wanna hear this story too, it’s funny.” Eret smiled and gestured to the couch. Wilbur obliged, and sat next to Fundy. Niki settled next to him. 

“So, my coworker  _ Marissa _ always grabs a ladder and climbs up to the rooftop to smoke during her break. And today the salon was pretty dead, so I went to sit up there with her. And so I’m people watching, right? And I watched this guy try and pickpocket the girl in front of him. Except instead of grabbing her wallet, he tripped and ate shit. Like facefirst into the sidewalk. And, when the lady turned around to help him, she dropped her coffee all over him! It was like instant karma!” Eret’s grin grew wider and wider as they told the story. 

“Really?” Niki asked, laughing. 

“Yeah! And the worst part was I couldn’t even tell Marissa why I was laughing because it was like 5 streets down. No human would’ve ever been able to see it.” 

“Truly unfortunate,” Wilbur said, laying across Fundy’s lap and resting his head in Eret’s. “Heyyyy, Eret?”

“What’s up?” They looked down at him. 

“What would I have to do to get you to cut my hair for me?” 

Eret lifted their sunglasses to the top of their head so they could make eye contact with Wilbur. 

“Pay me. You know when my shifts are.” They smirked before dumping him to the floor. Wilbur shrieked as he went crashing down. 

“Fundyyyyyy.” Wilbur whined, sitting up and pressing his head into Fundy’s knee. “Tell your sibling that they’re mean.” 

“Sure thing, dad.” He shook with laughter, and Wilbur didn’t know if it was from the inside joke or the fact that he had been dropped so unceremoniously. 

“You’re the best son I could ever ask for. My little champion.” Will responded, smiling. 

“Anyway, Will, how does it feel to be on Spring Break!” Fundy asked. 

“Good. I’m glad I’m almost done with the semester.” 

“Any big plans?” Eret asked. 

“I’m gonna go to Logstedshire with Niki tomorrow.”

“Niki, I thought you were gonna talk to your teacher about that,” Eret said. 

“I did! She didn’t listen.” 

“Oh, that’s shitty,” Fundy commented. 

“Yeah, well, what can you do.” She shrugged. “Any other plans, Will? That’s only one day out of the week.”

“If Schlatt throws a party I’ll go, but I think besides that I’m staying home. Phil’s been so worried about the whole Dream thing recently, I don’t wanna worry him further by running off.” Wilbur sighed. 

“Yeah, I get that. Do you think he’s suspicious of you guys? I mean, we’d go with you if you had to leave, but it would suck.” Eret said. 

“I’m really not sure? It’s hard to tell. I don’t know. He brought Techno soup the other day.” 

“Oh, yeah, I saw him. He literally broke into the house with like...a lockpick. He looks super familiar though. In a bad way. Just, be careful, okay?” Fundy said. 

“I will.” Wilbur smiled at him. “Don’t worry.” 

\---

“Philllll,” Techno whined as his temperature was taken. “It’s been like three days. I’m barely even sick anymore.” 

“I do not care, I’m not letting you out of bed until your fever is completely gone.” Phil shook his finger at him. 

“I’m literally 23,” Techno scoffed. 

“And I’m 29.” 

“What’s that got do to with anything?” 

“Oh, I just thought we were saying our ages,” Phil said sarcastically. “I do not care how old you are; you’ll always be my son. And I’ll always worry about you when I’m sick.” 

“...Love you, Phil.” Techno sighed, leaning into Phil’s cool hand on his forehead. 

“Love you too, Techno. Hey, that Tupperware isn’t ours.” Phil pointed out. 

“No, it’s Dream’s. From when he brought me soup the other day.” 

“I still can’t believe you ate that.” Phil sighed. “What if it was poisoned?” 

“Hunters wouldn’t put that much effort into killing someone. If he was gonna do it he’d just aim that crossbow at my skull n’ take me out.” Techno laughed softly. 

“Don’t laugh about that.” Phil scolded. 

“Sorry.” Techno leaned forward, resting his head on Phil’s shoulder. “Hey, where’s Tommy?” 

“Oh, at the animal shelter with his friends. Making some money.” 

“Cool.” Techno hummed. 

“I can feel you falling asleep on my shoulder. Get some rest, okay? I’ll wake you for dinner. Try and get that Tupperware back to Dream soon.” Phil gently got up, and Techno nodded at him. 

“Thanks, Phil.” 

“No problem. Sleep well.” Phil pressed a kiss to his forehead, then left the room. Techno grabbed his phone. 

**Techno:** Hey, do you have Dream’s phone number? 

**Skeppy:** who is dream>

**Skeppy:** ?*

**Techno:** Bad’s roommate. 

**Skeppy:** oh! no, but bad would probably give it if i asked

**Techno:** Could you?

**Skeppy:** yeah. no problem

**Techno:** Thanks, man.

\---

“Ranboo!” Tommy shouted, running across the quad to his friend. “Holy shit! It’s been two days and you haven’t answered any of my or Tubbo’s texts? Where were you? We we-Woah! You are fucking  _ terrified _ , bro.” 

“Yeah.” Ranboo let out a shaky breath. 

“What happened?” Tommy asked, suddenly concerned. 

“Here, can we talk about it in Phil’s room? It’s not something I really want to discuss out here.” Ranboo checked over his shoulder as they started walking. 

“Yeah, yeah. Of course.” Tommy nodded. On the walk to Phil’s room, they passed Tubbo’s locker, and Tommy grabbed his shoulder, pulling him along. Tubbo barely had time to slam his locker shut before he scrambled to catch up with them. 

“Woah! Tommy, what the hell? Oh! Ranboo! Hello! I was so worried about you! What’s going on?” 

“We’re having a big man meeting in Phil’s room,” Tommy said. Tubbo nodded. They made their way into Phil’s room, and Tommy made sure to shut the door behind him. 

“Kids, what’s up? Oh! Ranboo! Welcome back!” 

“Thanks, Phil,” Ranboo muttered. 

Phil rushed forward, concern in his eyes. “What’s wrong?” 

“I’m so...confused? I guess? Scared?” 

“What happened?” Tubbo asked. 

“Um, on Monday. It was just a normal afternoon, and then I went to the living room to ask my moms a question. And, there were two hunters there. They were talking, and the main one said that he knew we were Verges. So Mom freaked out and told me to run, and I told them I wasn’t leaving them. So Mama jumped in front of me to protect me.” 

“Oh,” Tommy said. 

“But, that’s not the weird part. The side one aimed his crossbow and tried to shoot Mama, but the main one tackled him into the ground. And they fell into a shadow and just disappeared? And we were debating what to do when the main one came back and apologized to us for that? And it turns out he’s a Verge too? His name’s Bad, he’s super nice, he told us he’d put us in the database as confirmed humans. But. I’m just so shaken up and confused. Mom and Mama kept me home from school a couple of days.” 

“I would too.” Phil breathed out. “I’m glad you’re safe, Ranboo.” 

“Thanks.” Ranboo gave them a tight-lipped smile. Tommy could feel his paranoia. He checked behind his shoulder, even though he knew Tubbo was the only person there. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> fun fact: ranboos mama is trans. theyre both his biological mothers
> 
> noir and i sat down the other day and ironed out all their class schedules. it took an hour. if thats something yall wanna see, say something and ill post it on one of my socials


	11. Pragmatic Beyond any Reasoning

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> both this chapter and the tdifs chapter is angst. sorry. 
> 
> im going to the airport tomorrow to pick up my brother. he's flying into palm springs which is cool bc we get to drive through the windmill farm. the windmill farm is the best part of palm springs. 
> 
> make sure to read the corresponding tdifs chapter! chapter title is from saline solution by wilbur (he..)
> 
> my tumblr/twitter: electribunny  
> my mineblr: vanilla-minecraft  
> noirs tumblr/twitter: h0n04ry3n10r

“Presents! Presents! Presents!” Tubbo chanted. 

“Let me finish my cake first, big man.” Tommy laughed, shaking his head. 

“Come onnnn, I want to see what you got!” 

“It isn’t even your birthday, Tubbo.” Eret laughed. 

“Yeah but I’m excited.” Tubbo threw his head back onto the couch. 

“Alright, fine, I’ll do presents. But only for you, big T.” Tommy grinned, shoveling down the rest of his cake. Tubbo cheered, and Techno got up from the couch, grabbing Tommy’s presents from the kitchen table and bringing them to him. 

“Start with mine!” Tubbo shouted. Tommy nodded and went searching through the pile for the one from Tubbo. He found it, and started with the card, smiling at all the doodles scribbled all over it. He read the card and moved on to the box. 

“Animal Crossing...Tubbo this is great but I don’t own a Switch.” Tommy looked up at his best friend with a raised eyebrow. 

“About that.” Fundy smiled, nudging one of the gifts closer to Tommy with his foot. Tommy picked it up, and read the card, even though he had a pretty good idea of what was in the box. He smiled at the notes all four of the Kings left him and then opened the gift. 

He was right. A Nintendo Switch was sitting, waiting for him. 

“No way.” He looked up at them. “No fucking way.” 

“Yes, way.” Eret grinned at him. 

“Happy birthday, Tommy,” Niki said. Tommy all but threw the Switch into Phil’s hands before he rushed forward, trying to pull them all into a hug. 

“Thank you!” He said into someone’s shoulder. He could feel them laughing, and he gave them one last squeeze before pulling away. “Seriously, this is awesome.” 

“Now you don’t have to hijack my island! You have your own!” Tubbo smiled. 

“Oh, no, don’t get me wrong. I’m still going over to fuck your shit up as often as possible.” Tommy giggled, grabbing another gift. 

“Oh, that one’s from Ranboo. He asked me to give it to you.” Phil chimed in. Tommy nodded and opened the envelope. 

_ Tommy,  _

_ Happy Birthday! I know we’ve only been friends for a few weeks, but you’ve been wonderful and made me feel so welcome here in SMP. I’ve never had Verge friends before, and it’s been so relieving to not have to hide myself and my ability.  _

_ Happy Birthday! -Ranboo _

_ (p.s. Sorry for the lackluster gift. I didn’t really know what to get you. I’ll do better next year.) _

Sitting in the envelope was a 25$ gift card, and Tommy smiled as he saw it. He set it down on the coffee table and went to grab the next gift, when Techno stopped him. 

“Um. You don’t have to open this one if you don’t want to. I found it on the porch when I got home from work. I don’t even know how he found out it was your birthday, but, it’s up to you.” Tommy was confused until he looked down at the small box, and saw the name written on the tag. 

_ To: Tommy W.  _

_ From: Dream C.  _

“The fuck?” Tommy said, suddenly confused. “Why’d he get me a gift?” 

“No clue.” Techno shrugged. Tommy flipped the box over in his hands a few times, before deciding to open it. 

“Bluetooth headphones,” Tommy muttered, holding up the box so everyone else could see. 

“Well.” Phil took a breath. “That’s...nice of him?” 

“I guess?” Tommy set the headphones down. 

“Okay, you’re gonna wanna open me, Wilbur, and Techno’s gifts at the same time,” Phil said. “They’re all connected.” 

“Oh. Alright.” Tommy nodded. 

He almost teared up when he opened it. A vintage record player from Phil, and a disk from each of his brothers. 

“Guys. This is. Woah.” 

“We saw you looking at it at the thrift store about a month ago. We had Phil go back and buy it for you that night.” Wilbur smiled. “You can get whatever disks you like, but Techno and I picked these two out just to start you off. I think you’ll like them.” Tommy looked down at the disks, one labeled Mellohi, and the other Cat. He looked up at his family, then back down at the disks, and up at his family again. 

“Thank you, guys.” He whispered out, eyes beginning to water. 

\---

Phil reached up, gently knocking on Tommy’s door. 

“Come in!” Tommy shouted. Phil opened the door and walked in. Tommy’s LED lights cast a soft blue glow over his room, and music was playing from his new record player. Tommy himself sat on his bed, looking very comfortable in a hoodie and sweatpants, hair still damp from his shower. He looked up from his phone, smiling at Phil as he walked in. Phil’s heart melted at the sight. His son. 

“Hey. I’m heading to bed soon. I just wanted to say happy birthday again before I do.” Phil walked in, sitting next to Tommy on the bed. Tommy wriggled his way under Phil’s arm and pressed himself into his side. Phil wrapped his wings around them in a protective ring, just like he always did when his children were young. 

“This is the best birthday I’ve ever had. Thank you so much.” Tommy muttered into his shoulder. Phil reached a hand up to run it through his son’s hair. 

“I’m so glad you had a good day. I love you so much, Toms. I’m so glad I ended up with you.” Phil whispered back. 

“Phil?” Tommy sat up. 

“Yeah?”

“How  _ did _ you end up with me? I know you met Techno on the street, and you were friends with Wilbur’s mom, but how did you get me?” 

_ Fifteen. He was only fifteen, and a father of two. He wanted to throw up, but he kept strong, guiding his two children out of the building.  _

_ Through the commotion, he heard a scream.  _

_ “My baby! My baby! Someone, please take my son! Save my baby! Please!” He heard a crossbow shot. The screaming stopped. He turned around. The baby couldn’t have been older than a month. He thought of Wilbur at that age. He thought of Sam, the same age he was now, showing Phil how to hold him properly.  _

_ He made a split-second decision.  _

_ “Run. I’ll meet up with you soon.” He told his children. He let go of their hands and ran back into the building. _

“Tommy. You keep asking me this. You don’t want to know.” Phil sighed. 

“Maybe I do wanna know. That’s why I asked.” Tommy pouted.

“Tommy. Please.” Phil sighed. 

“Phil, I can feel how scared you are every time I bring this up. You can’t blame me for being curious.”

“The reason I get so scared is the same reason you don’t wanna know what happened.”

“No. You know what, Phil? I  _ do _ wanna fucking know! I’m tired of you treating me like I’m a little kid! I have a right to know about my past!” 

“Tommy. It’s not really your past. You were barely a month old when I got you.” 

“Well, that’s a whole month that you  _ didn’t _ have me. Techno and Wilbur were also both little when you got them. Why do they get to know but I don’t!” 

“Because they experienced traumatic shit, Tommy! I’m trying to protect you from that! It’s a **good** thing that you don’t remember what it was like before we came here! Because it wasn’t very pleasant! Why won’t you just listen when I tell you you’re better off not knowing!” Phil didn’t mean to raise his voice, but his heart rate was increasing, and his hands were shaking, and suddenly he was 15 again. He looked up through his teary eyes to see Tommy also on the verge of tears. 

“Oh, fuck. Tommy, I’m so sorry.” He whispered, pulling Tommy into his arms. “I didn’t mean to yell at you. I’m so sorry.” Tommy gripped his shirt and began to cry.

“I love you so much, Toms. I don’t want your birthday to end like this. I’m so sorry.” 

“It’s okay,” Tommy said, although it was barely legible through his sobs. 

“No, it’s not okay. I should’ve known better. I shouldn’t be taking my stress out on you. It’s natural that you’d be curious.” He sighed, before pressing a kiss to his son’s forehead. “I love you so much, I don’t know what I’d do without you. Happy birthday, Thomas.” He squeezed his son one last time before getting up. 

“I love you too. Goodnight, Dad.” Tommy whispered. Phil got up and left. 

\---

As soon as he heard Phil’s door slam shut, Wilbur crept out of his room, making sure to be quiet. It seemed like Techno had the same idea, as the door across the hall slowly opened as well. The two made their way to Tommy’s room, and Wilbur gently knocked before pushing the door open. 

“Hi.” Tommy looked up at them. He gave them a shaky smile, although his red nose and bloodshot eyes gave away his facade of happiness. 

“Hey, buddy.” Techno quietly said, walking forward hesitantly. He sat down on the bed and opened his arms, and Tommy gladly accepted the hug. 

“Did you guys hear the yelling? I’m sorry. I didn’t want to get into a fight with Phil.” He started crying again, and Techno looked up at Wilbur, panic in his eyes. If it was any other situation Wilbur would’ve laughed. Techno was never good with emotions. 

“Don’t cry, Tom. It wasn’t your fault.” Wilbur said, sitting on the other side of Tommy. “Hey, it’s your birthday, you shouldn’t be sad.” 

“I know,” Tommy said, voice wavering. Wilbur sighed, looking at his brother. He didn’t want his brother’s birthday to end in tears. He pulled out his phone. 

**Wilbur:** hey, you doing anything tonight? 

**Schlatt:** not really. what’s up? 

**Wilbur:** tommy got into a fight with phil. he keeps crying. i just don’t want his birthday to end like this. kinda a shitty way to end the day. can we come over? 

**Schlatt:** oh shit. yeah, come over. i’ll throw together a small party for him. a bunch of college kids, celebrating his birthday. he’ll think thats cool as shit

**Wilbur:** ur the best. tysm

**Schlatt:** i know. seeya soon. 

“Come on bud, get up. We’re going to Schlatt’s. There’s a party.” Wilbur said. 

“A party? Won’t Phil get upset?” Tommy asked. 

“Who said we’re telling Phil?” Wilbur grinned. 

Tommy beamed up at him. 

\---

In the end, Wilbur managed to get Niki to wake up Tubbo, and the five of them each snuck out. Wilbur pulled up to Schlatt’s house, smiling as he saw all the cars already there. He parked Eret’s car, and the group headed out. 

Wilbur could hear the music playing as he locked the car doors. In his peripherals, Tommy looked at Tubbo and grinned. They had both dressed up in button-up shirts and nice jeans. Wilbur thought it was fucking adorable. 

He opened the door to Schlatt’s house, not bothering to knock. The lights were on but no one was there, so he led the group out to the backyard. 

“Well, if it isn’t the man of the hour!” Schlatt shouted out as they stepped out onto the back porch. Schlatt and Connor both got up from where they were sitting around the firepit and ran to them, lifting Tommy up. 

“Ladies and gentlemen, the birthday boy!” Schlatt announced. The whole group stood up and started chanting Tommy’s name. Schlatt and Connor tossed him out into the crowd, and Tommy shrieked in delight as he went flying. He started laughing as he landed safely in Minx’s arms. 

“Happy birthday Tommy!” Minx yelled out, setting him down. 

“Happy birthday Tommy!” The group parroted, cheering. 

“Thank you!” Tommy laughed, and the group slowly began to settle. 

“We’ve got beer, we’ve got white claws, we’ve got Jameson, we’ve got shit to mix your own drinks. Whatever you want, lil’ man.” Schlatt reached out, ruffling Tommy’s hair. 

“Woah!” Wilbur rushed forward, stepping in. “You cannot give him drinks, Schlatt, he literally just turned fourteen.” 

“Wilbur, it’s the kid’s birthday, you gotta let him celebrate a little bit.” 

“Fine. One drink.  _ One.  _ And I’m making for you. Come on. You too, Tubbo, it’s not fair to give Tommy one and not you.” Wilbur said, leading them into the kitchen. He looked over the options spread out on the counter, and eventually grabbed the fruit juice, and three solo cups. He wrote their three respective names on the cups, and then poured a little bit of vodka into each. (Although there was a lot more in his than the kids’). He filled the rest of the cups with the juice, added ice, and stirred it with the handle of a plastic fork. 

“Don’t drink this too fast.” He told the boys, handing them each their drinks. Tommy nodded and took a sip of his. Wilbur giggled as his face scrunched up. 

“This tastes like rubbing alcohol and fruit juice.” He said. 

“Yup.” Wilbur nodded, flashing them a smile. “Welcome to the world of alcoholic beverages.” 

When they went back out to the yard, Techno was nodding along as Connor rambled about something, Niki was sitting between Minx and Puffy, laughing at whatever Minx was saying, and Quackity, Karl, and Schlatt were sitting together. When Quackity noticed them, he called Tommy and Tubbo, and as they ran over, Schlatt got up, approaching Wilbur. 

“Hey.” Schlatt grinned, grabbing Wilbur’s cup and taking a sip from it. Wilbur scoffed and grabbed Schlatt’s beer from his hand, stealing a sip of his own in retaliation. 

“Seriously man, thank you for doing this. I haven’t seen Tommy smile this wide in a long time.” 

“It’s not a big deal.” Schlatt waved him off, taking a sip of his beer. “You know I’m always looking for an excuse to party. I invited Sapnap too, but the guy said he’s hanging with George. Apparently they’re having  _ friendship issues _ right now.” Schlatt mocked. 

“Oh. Well. That sucks.” 

“Whatever. His loss, not ours. Anyway, what got the old man so worked up?” 

“I’m not sure. I think something about Tommy’s adoption? I didn’t really ask. I just heard yelling.” Wilbur shrugged. 

“Well. I hope it wasn’t something too bad. Phil isn’t the kind of guy to yell at his kids like that.”

“I know. I think he’s just stressed about the whole Dream thing, to be honest. He’s got a lot of trauma surrounding hunters.” Wilbur sighed. “I’ll be right back. I’m gonna go smoke out front.” 

“Want me to come with?” Schlatt asked. 

“No, I just need a minute. Thanks, though.” 

“Anytime, man.” Schlatt smiled at him and returned to the party. Wilbur walked out to the front yard and sat on the doorstep. He pulled his cigarettes out of his front pocket and grabbed one. He didn’t bother with his lighter, considering he was the only one outside. He brought the cig to his lips and sighed as he exhaled. 

“Hey,” Techno said, opening the door. 

“Hey.” Wilbur nodded at him. 

“Everything okay?” Techno asked, sitting down next to him. 

“Yeah. Just, worried about Phil. It’s not like him to snap at us like that.” Will took another drag. 

“I wonder what happened.” Techno breathed out. He wordlessly grabbed a cigarette, and Wilbur reached out to light it for him. 

“Yeah.” Wilbur sighed. “I wonder.” 

\---

“Niki said that Wilbur said that you and Phil got into a fight,” Tubbo said, taking another sip of his white claw. Niki had disappeared with Minx and Puffy a few minutes prior, and the second she was out of eyesight, Schlatt appeared. He handed them each another drink and winked. 

“Yeah, we did. He yelled at me.” 

“Wait, why?” Tubbo leaned back, shocked. “He never yells at you guys!” 

“I know, big man.” Tommy shook his head, spinning the can in his hands. 

“What happened?”

“I asked him how he ended up with me. Which is a perfectly fair question, I think, but apparently fuckin’ not.” 

“That’s bullshit. If Techno and Wilbur get to know about where they were before they were with Phil, you should get to too.” 

“That’s what I was saying!” Tommy threw his hands up. 

“Do your brothers know how he got you?” 

“Yeah. Tech was 9 and Will was 6. They probably fuckin’ remember it.” 

“Then why don’t you just ask them?” Tubbo raised an eyebrow at him. “They’d probably tell you.” 

Tommy froze. 

“I never thought of that.” He mumbled. 

“Go, go!” Tubbo ushered him toward the door. “Go ask them! I’ll be here when you get back!” Tommy nodded and got up, all but sprinting through the house. He slammed open the front door, and both his brothers looked up at him. 

“Is everything okay, Toms?” Wilbur asked.

“Techno, I didn’t know you smoked,” Tommy said, ignoring Wilbur. 

“I don’t.” Techno shrugged, bringing the cigarette to his lips. 

“Okay?” Tommy said, confused. 

“Tommy, I thought I said only one drink.” Will gestured to the can in Tommy’s hand. 

“Hey, Schlatt gave it to me! Tubbo has one too!” 

“Of course he did.” Wilbur rubbed his temple with his free hand. “What did you need?” He asked. 

“Oh!” Tommy sat down next to Wilbur. “I had a question.” 

“Shoot,” Techno said. 

“Do you...Do you guys know how Dad got me?” Tommy asked. Wilbur and Techno both stiffened, making eye contact, before Wilbur turned to Tommy. 

“It started in Antarctica City. Me, Techno, and Dad lived together in a group home for Verges…”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> noir did a super sick pogchamp jukebox drawing of dream from the last tdifs chapter, check it out on his twitter! it's also retweeted to my account. hes so talented im so proud of him


	12. Forgiveness

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hey. so sorry about all the time between updates. i keep meaning to get them out earlier and then i don’t
> 
> i’m updating on my phone bc i don’t feel like grabbing my laptop. sorry if the formatting is fucked up
> 
> be sure to read the corresponding tdifs chapter. chapter title is from its quiet uptown from hamilton. enjoy!
> 
> my tumblr/twitter: electribunny  
> my mineblr: vanilla-minecraft   
> noirs tumblr/twitter: h0n04rys3n10r

There was a hand shaking him awake, and Wilbur shot up. His body protested, but his fear powered him through. 

It was just Tommy, standing next to his bed. His hair was sticking up in every direction, there were dark circles underneath his eyes, and he was swaying slightly as he stood. 

“Oh, Tommy.” Wilbur croaked out. His head became clouded and foggy as the adrenaline faded. 

“Wilby, m’ head hurts. It started hurting more when I walked in. ” He mumbled, squinting as the light from the window shone on his face. 

“Of course it does. I’m gonna kill Schlatt. You’re lucky Techno doesn’t drink or you’d probably have a triple hangover.” He sighed, trying to ignore his own pounding headache. 

“M’ sorry,” Tommy muttered. 

“I’m not upset with you. I started doin’ the partying shit when I was around your age. Just don’t make it a habit, okay?” 

“You made it a habit.” Tommy pointed out. 

“I know.” Wilbur groaned, getting up. The action went against every instinct he had. “Stay here. I’ll get you shit.” Tommy nodded and flopped onto his bed. Wilbur tiptoed to the kitchen, careful not to wake Phil, and grabbed two Gatorades. On his way back to his room, he stopped in the bathroom and grabbed the Advil. 

When he opened his door again, Tommy was curled up on his bed, clutching his orca plushie. 

“Sit up Toms,” Wilbur said, handing him one of the drinks. As Tommy began working on the cap, Wilbur counted out four of the tablets and handed them to his brother. He took the medicine gratefully. 

“Holy shit, this Gatorade is the best thing I’ve ever tasted,” Tommy said. 

“Good,” Wilbur responded, taking some medicine of his own before leaving the bottle on his bedside table. “Move over, we’re getting more sleep.” 

Tommy didn’t protest, just slid over to the other side of the bed so Wilbur had enough space to crawl in. He pulled the covers over them both, wrapped his arms around his brother, and hoped his exhaustion was enough to pull Tommy under too. 

\---

Phil woke up, not feeling rested at all. Guilt had eaten through him the entire night, and sleep didn’t come easy. 

He had to apologize to Tommy. 

He rubbed his eyes, shook out his wings, and got out of bed. He opened his door and froze in his tracks when Tommy’s door was open. He took a few more steps forward and saw that his bed was empty. 

He hadn’t left...had he? 

Anxiety crept up in his stomach as he made his way down the hall to question his sons. If Tommy did leave, he at least hoped he had the sense to tell one of his brothers about it. 

Techno’s room was empty, but he always went on runs in the mornings, so that was expected. He opened Wilbur’s door and went to wake him. 

What he saw instead warmed his heart. Wilbur was snuggled up in bed, clutching the smaller boy to his chest. He could barely see Tommy’s face, but both boys were peacefully asleep. He would’ve taken a picture if he had his phone, but he didn’t, so he just shut the door and left. 

He was glad Tommy had gone to Wilbur for comfort. But he hated the fact that Tommy needed comfort in the first place. He had fucked up. 

He folded his wings onto his back, threw on a coat, and stepped outside. Light rain was falling onto the ground, but he guessed by the dark clouds in the sky that it would pick up later in the day. 

He sat outside for a few minutes, just watching the rain when he saw a pink blur barreling down the street. Phil could feel a slight breeze as it approached. It slowed down as it neared the house, and there was Techno, in a hoodie and gym shorts. His hair fell out of its bun from the force of stopping, and he reached up to fix it as he walked toward Phil. 

“What are you doing out here?” He asked, sitting next to Phil on the porch steps. 

“Watching the rain.” He answered. 

“Thinkin’ about Tommy?” Techno asked. 

“How’d you know?” 

“He told Wilbur n’ I last night.” 

“I just feel like shit.” Phil sighed. “I’m being a bad father. I shouldn’t be taking my emotions out on him.” 

“I don’t think you’re a bad father. You’re doing the best you can, considering the circumstance.” Techno responded. 

“Thanks, Techno.” Phil scoffed. 

“No. Seriously. How old were you when you took me in?” 

“Nine?” He glanced over at his son, wondering why it mattered. 

“And Wilbur?” 

“Eleven.” 

“Tommy?” 

“Fifteen.” 

“Nine, Eleven, and Fifteen,” Techno repeated. “Think about that, Phil. Kids shouldn’t be raising kids. But you were put in a situation where you had to. So, I say you’re doing a damn good job, all things considered. It’s okay to fuck up every once in a while.” 

“I...never thought of it like that,” Phil said. 

“You never had the time to. You were too busy trying to raise yourself, and three children. But that way of living isn’t sustainable, Phil. You never got to be a child. That’s traumatic. And if you don’t work on your trauma you’re going to keep making mistakes like this for the rest of your life.” 

“When did you get all wise n’ shit?” Phil cracked a small smile. 

“Birth.” Techno deadpanned. Phil couldn’t help but laugh.

“Thank you, Techno.” 

“No problem. You’re always there for us, let us be there for you.” 

“Come on.” Phil hoisted himself up and offered a hand to Techno. “Let’s go inside. I don’t wanna be out here when the rain starts getting worse.” 

\---

Thankfully, Wilbur was fast asleep the next time Tommy woke up, so the only hangover he had to deal with was his own. 

Even that had subsided. His head still lightly throbbed, but besides that, he felt completely fine. 

He tried to tangle himself out from Wilbur’s limbs, but the movement woke his brother up. He groaned as his symptoms doubled once again. Wilbur had admittedly drunk a lot more than he had, and that showed. 

“You’re giving me your headache,” Tommy whined. 

“I’m sorry,” Wilbur mumbled. “How are you feeling?” 

“A lot better before you woke up.” 

“That’s good. You might wanna go hang out with Techno, Toms. It’s probably not helping you to stay in here.” 

“Mhmm. Okay. Love you, Will.” 

“Love you too,” Wilbur said, before flopping back onto his pillow. Tommy got out of bed and left the room. He felt better and better the further he stepped away from his brother. 

Without Wilbur’s exhaustion pulling him down, he didn’t really have the desire to sleep anymore. He went to his room and grabbed his phone, checking the time. It was around 10, which was near the time he’d normally wake up on a weekend anyway. He shoved it in his pocket and went downstairs. 

Guilt flooded his senses as he neared the kitchen. Curious, he peeked his head around the corner, and saw Phil, pulling ingredients out of the fridge. 

“Oh. Tommy.” He glanced up as he entered the kitchen. “I-How did you sleep?” 

“Alright.” Tommy sighed, walking in and taking a seat at the table. He was a little mad,  _ Phil  _ was the one who had yelled at him, and there he was, making Tommy feel his guilt. He knew Phil wasn’t doing it on purpose, but he had half a mind to turn right around and go back to Will’s room. Fogginess and nausea were preferable over the crushing regret. 

He did something he didn’t do often. He focused all his energy on pushing him out, as far as he could. The guilt faded, and while he could still feel it, nagging at the edges of his conscious, it wasn’t nearly as unbearable as it was before. 

It was lonely in his head. His emotions and no one else’s. Techno walked in and Tommy couldn’t even pick out how he was feeling. His extremities began to fill with static from the force of keeping them away. 

Without the other’s feelings clouding his own, he was forced to confront his emotions head-on. He felt confused. On one hand, he was angry at Phil, for yelling at him, treating him like he was too young to learn about sensitive things. The fact that he was obviously feeling bad about what he did but still wouldn’t apologize. On the other, he was processing the story that he had been told the night before. 

Techno grabbed his mug of coffee and left the kitchen, walking off to his room, Tommy assumed. 

“...Phil?” He asked. 

“Yes, Tommy?” Phil left his spoon in the mixing bowl and turned, giving Tommy his full attention. 

“What would’ve happened to Will and Techno? If...if they got you while you were going back for me.” 

A mixture of anger and fear nagged at the back of his mind. 

“Who told you?” Phil asked, obviously trying to maintain his composure. 

“Wilbur did. Please don’t be mad. I asked him to tell me.” 

“I’m not mad.” 

“Yes, you are. Don’t lie to me please.” 

“Sorry,” Phil said. The guilt crept forward. The static increased as Tommy pushed it back. His head began to ache from the force of keeping it away. 

It was silent for a few moments. 

“I don’t know. I don’t know what would’ve happened to them. I don’t like to think about it. I got you, and I got out. That’s all that matters.” 

The effort to keep Phil out of his head was too much. He let down his barrier, the static faded, and the emotions flooded back into his head. 

The tears he was crying were not his own. 

“I.” He choked down a sob. “I’m gonna go hang out with Techno now.” 

“Alright. I’ll call you three down when breakfast is ready. I love you, Tommy.” 

“I love you too, Phil.” He croaked out, and then he was sprinting away, out of the kitchen, into the hallway, and up the stairs as quickly as he could. 

\---

Techno perked his head up as he heard feet sprinting up the stairs. A door slammed. 

It was quiet for a few minutes, and he went to put his headphones in, but he heard a door open. There were more hesitant steps, and then a knock at his door. 

“Yeah?” 

“Can I come in?” Tommy asked. 

“Sure,” Techno responded. Tommy walked in, shutting the door behind him and flopping down onto Techno’s bed. 

“Wilbur’s hungover and Dad’s all upset n’ shit so I’m gonna hang out in here,” Tommy announced. 

“Alright.” Techno hummed. “That’s fine. I’m just writing a paper.” 

“What for?” 

“Advanced Greek Literature.” 

“Oh, you told me about this class. that’s the one where you had to read that story about the Thesaurus guy.” 

“Theseus, Tommy. But you’re right, that’s it.”

“Nice. I like Thesues, he’s cool. But I’ll let you write now.” Techno gave him a thumbs up and spun back around in his desk chair, putting on his headphones. He pulled up his study playlist on Spotify, as well as the rubric for the assignment. Glancing over it, he opened a new doc, cracked his knuckles, kicked up his speed, and got to work. 

Half an hour later, he reached the 5 required pages. He slapped on a closing paragraph, ran it through Grammarly, and called it a day. He submitted the assignment, then turned to check up on Tommy. 

His new headphones were in his ears, and he was glancing down at his phone with furrowed brows. When he felt Techno’s eyes on him, he pulled out an earbud and looked up. 

“You’re really proud of that paper.” 

“Yeah.” Techno nodded, feeling his cheeks go pink. He normally tried to be humble about his work, but Tommy had a habit of pointing out how others felt. “Yeah. It’s a good one.” 

“Cool.” Tommy nodded, before glancing at his phone. “Fuck.” 

“What’s up?” 

“Tubbo’s kicking my ass in 8 Ball right now, but I promised him 10 bucks I’d win this game.” 

“Give it here.” Techno reached out for the phone. Tommy handed it over, and Techno began playing. Apparently, he hadn’t lost his skills from his big tournament with Will a few years prior, as he won the game in one turn. He handed the phone back to Tommy. 

“Holy shit.” Tommy grinned. 

“You’re  _ welcome _ .” Techno prodded, although it was completely lighthearted. 

“Thank you! Oh, Ranboo wants to play Minecraft. I’m gonna go mess with his house before he logs on. Bye Techno!” Tommy got up, running out. 

“Shut my door!” He called out. Tommy doubled back, and slammed it shut. Techno shook his head at his brother’s antics. 

**Techno:** Now is probably the time to talk to Tommy. He’s in a good mood. 

**Phil:** got it, thanks. 

\---

There was a knock on his door as he went to boot up Minecraft. 

“Who is it?!” He called out. 

“Phil!” 

“You can come in!” 

The door opened. It was more nerves than guilt. Tommy was fine with that. He could do nervous. 

“Tommy.” 

“Phil.” 

“I...need to apologize. I shouldn’t have projected my trauma onto you. It was unfair of me to yell at you when you asked me about it. Actually, it was unfair of me to keep that story from you in general. In my mind I thought I was protecting you but, you’re not a baby anymore. You’re growing up. You’re getting older. And, you were right. You do deserve to know about your life before me, even if it was only a month. So, I’m sorry. I’m glad Wilbur told you, and if you have any questions, I’ll answer them.” 

“Woah. Um. Thank you, Phil.” He took a deep breath. “I forgive you.” 

Tommy didn’t know if the tears of relief were from him or Phil. His Dad’s eyes were dry, but Phil was awfully good at hiding negative expressions. That was alright. Tommy could cry for both of them. 

“Is it true that you named me?” He asked. 

“Yeah.” Phil softly laughed. “You’re the only one of my kids that I got to name myself.” 

“Why Thomas?” 

“It was my father’s name.” 

Tommy felt a confusing mix of emotions at that. Honored, that he had been named after him. After the grandfather he never got to meet. 

If he was still alive, Phil probably never would’ve met Techno, or Wilbur, or him. Tommy didn’t like that thought. 

“Oh. That’s...really cool.” Tommy smiled at him. “I don’t have any more questions right now. Maybe later.”

“That’s alright. Whenever you want.” Phil opened his arms, and Tommy stepped into them, relishing in the warmth of his father, and the protection by the wings that surrounded him. 


	13. Get the Cool

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i’d like to start this off with an apology. i know it’s been fucking forever since the last chapter. it was a combination of me being too damn depressed to write, and my laptop all but giving up. luckily, i’ve got my motivation back, and dad said he’d help me pay for a new computer, so things r looking up. that being said, about 70% of this and the new tdifs chapter was written on my phone, so sorry if the formatting is weird. 
> 
> chapter title is from 19-2000 by gorillaz. be sure to read the corresponding tdifs chapter. enjoy!
> 
> my tumblr/twitter: electribunny   
> my mineblr: vanilla-minecraft   
> noir’s tumblr/twitter: h0n04rys3n10r

“Now, most combinations of angles and sides will give you a congruence theorem, however, there is one notable exception. Angle Side Side.” Phil wrote out the acronym on the board, just to hear his students laugh. He crossed it out before turning to the class. “So there will be no ass in your proofs, got it?” He raised an eyebrow at them and reveled in the giggles that erupted.

“Alright, well, let’s try one out, shall we? Uhhhh, Ranboo!” 

“Yeah?” Ranboo lifted his head from where he was copying notes. 

“Where do your parents work?” 

“Well, my mom is a therapist, and my mama is a personal trainer.” 

“Alright, so.” Phil began sketching a triangle on the board. “Say Ranboo’s mama is at work at the gym, point G, and she’s trying to meet up with Ranboo’s mom, at the therapist’s office, point T…” He picked on another kid to create a congruent triangle involving their parents, finished sketching out the problem, and allowed the students to get to work. 

Phil leaned back onto a filing cabinet as he watched his class. The past few days had been filled with self-reflecting, after his conversation with Techno and his apology to Tommy. 

Techno urged him to go to therapy, although Phil knew better than to go to a human therapist about his issues. As much as they were supposed to keep meetings confidential, he knew there would be no repercussions if he was reported to the FHA. 

But he knew for a fact that Ranboo’s mother was a Verge. She wouldn’t say anything. 

He’d have to ask Ranboo for her contact information after class. 

\---

Tommy walked into the theatre room and saw that the chairs had been moved, and the wooden platforms which assembled their makeshift stage were set up. So he chucked his backpack into the corner with everyone else’s and went to sit next to Ranboo on the floor. 

“Your dad asked me for my mom’s number today,” Ranboo said, forgoing a greeting. 

“Uh, does he realize she’s married?” Tommy asked, raising an eyebrow. 

“Yeah, he just wanted to schedule a therapy appointment. And  _ I  _ wanted to see your reaction to him asking for a girl’s number.” 

“Not cool man.” Tommy scoffed, shoving him. 

“What, Phil isn’t allowed to be into girls? He’s only 29, you know.” 

“I am  **not** going to discuss my father’s romantic endeavors, and especially not with you.” Tommy deadpanned. Just then the bell rang, and Mr. Roberts entered the room. 

“Hello, my wonderful drama students! As you can see I’ve got the stage set up, and that is because today we are going to be doing improv!” He smiled at the class. “But before that, an announcement. Well, two, technically. The first is that anyone who stays after class to help me set up for choir next period gets 10 extra credit points. The second is that the drama club officers and I have officially decided on the spring musical!” The whole room perked up at that. 

“I’ll tell you guys early, but you gotta promise to keep it a secret, okay? It’ll be officially announced on tomorrow’s morning announcements. Try to build some hype around it because we need a big ensemble, alright?” Mr. Roberts asked. Tommy nodded. 

“Drumroll please.” The class began tapping on the floor. “The spring musical is….L’manburg!” The whole class cheered, and even Tommy couldn’t help but smile. L’manburg was Wilbur’s favorite musical, and he knew his brother would be excited. 

“Now, of course, we’ll have to adjust some things to make it school appropriate. But I’ve already got approval from the principal, so we’re good to go! I expect to see most of you at auditions,  _ especially  _ you, Mr. Watson.” Mr. Roberts stared at Tommy. He returned the look with a two-finger salute, and the teacher nodded and kept talking. “Alright, so, I’ll be taking attendance now, just sit tight.” 

“Dude, why’d he call you out like that?” Ranboo asked. 

“Oh, Wilbur was like a theatre kid prodigy when he was a student here. The only reason I’m in this class is because Mr. R hunted me down and begged me to transfer in after he found out I was his brother.” Tommy leaned into Ranboo’s side, and his friend reached an arm around his shoulders. 

“Oh, do you not like theatre?” Ranboo asked. 

“No, no, I do. It’s just more Wilbur’s thing than mine.” Tommy hummed.

“Are you going to audition then?”

“Fuck yeah I am.”

\---

Techno hummed along to his music as it began playing from his Bluetooth speakers. He normally wasn’t one for mornings, but he was having a pretty good one. He brought his speedometer out into the forest with him (gifted by Wilbur) and beat his personal fastest speed. His legs burned, but the satisfaction of scribbling 65mph into his notebook was more than worth it. 

He took out his hair from his bun and took a few seconds to massage his scalp as the tension from his hair tie released. He started the water to give it some time to warm up and began brushing out his hair. 

He showered quickly more out of habit than anything else and soon was toweling off. He quickly applied lotion, and considering the warm day, he didn’t bother to blow dry his hair. He instead put it into his normal work style of two twin braids. 

He went downstairs and was greeted by Wilbur, who was rifling through the fridge. 

“I thought you had class?” Techno said, touching the back of his hand to the coffee pot to see if it was still hot. 

“Oh, Professor Hadersford sent out an email, we’re doing asynchronous today. Apparently, her daughter has a doctor’s appointment and they couldn’t reschedule.” 

“So...doesn’t that mean you should be in your room working right now?” Techno filled up his thermos and put it in the microwave. 

“I don’t have her again until next week.” Wilbur shrugged, grabbing a Pepsi and going to leave. 

“Soda at 10 in the morning, really?” He raised an eyebrow at his brother. 

“Blasting MoBo in the shower, really?” Wilbur mocked him.

“Listen, in my defense, I thought I was home alone.” 

“That shouldn’t matter. I, for one, would never mock you for your music taste.” Wilbur said, in a tone that very much suggested the opposite. 

“Whatever.” Techno laughed. “I’m going to work. Seeya.” 

“Bye Tech.” Wilbur grinned at him and left. 

Techno just waved bye, grabbed his coffee from the microwave, and headed out. He drove in silence and made it to the post office pretty quickly. 

“Technoblaaaaaaade,” Skeppy whined, leaning over the counter as he walked in. 

“Skeppyyyyyyy.” Techno mirrored his tone. 

“Can you deliver the packages for me today?” 

“You hate working counter.” Techno raised an eyebrow at him. 

“Yeah, but I was loading the truck earlier, and there's like three packages for Blossom Street.” 

“What’s wrong with that?” Techno took a sip of his coffee. 

“Uh, the crazy lady with her equally crazy dog lives on Blossom Street?” 

“How much shit is in the truck?” 

“Not much, you’ll be done before your lunch break, promise.” 

“Fine,” Techno said. “Hand me the keys.” 

Skeppy shot up so fast that his uniform hat flew off his head, and he had to dive to grab it before it reached the floor. He shoved it on his head and tossed the keys to Techno. 

“Alright. If I’m not done by 12 you’re paying for my lunch.”

“Gladly.” Skeppy smiled at him, and Techno headed to the back where the mail truck was loaded. 

\---

Luckily for Skeppy, the route  _ was  _ fairly quick. Techno was able to wrap it up in around an hour. He was on his way back to the post office, stopped at a red light on the main boulevard when he heard shouting from the sidewalk. He glanced over. 

It was Dream, George, and Sapnap. Dream wasn’t wearing his hunter uniform, but that wasn’t what startled him (although it was surprising.) 

What startled him was that Dream looked the happiest he had in years. He looked like a boulder had been lifted off his shoulders, and Techno couldn’t remember the last time he saw a smile so carefree on his friend’s face. 

“Techno, Techno! Hi, Techno!” Dream beamed, waving at him. 

He looked so overjoyed, Techno couldn’t help but grin and wave back. 

\---

It seemed that Niki was taking full advantage of the warm weather and shining sun, as she answered the door in a sundress, and with a smile. 

“Will! I just made cupcakes! Come in!” She grinned at him, and Wilbur stepped into the house. Fundy was laying on the couch, and he waved to Wilbur as he walked in. 

“We should do something today,” Wilbur said, throwing himself onto the couch after grabbing a cupcake. He reached his free hand out to tickle Fundy’s feet, just because they were close enough that he could. Fundy shot him a glare and sat up, tucking his feet underneath himself. 

“Like what?” Niki asked.

“I don’t know. Something.” Wilbur shrugged. “It’s the first warm day in a while, we should take advantage of it.” 

“We could go bother Eret at work,” Fundy suggested. 

“Techno and I did that last week, and they said that if we ever came back they’d stop sneaking us the expensive hair dye he likes.” 

“So?” Fundy raised an eyebrow at him. “He used to use box dye, why can’t he go back?”

“It’s the principal of the matter. I try to maintain a good relationship with my brothers.”

“We couldddd prank call Phil at work?” 

“Tommy and I tried that once and he thought someone had died. Never again.” 

“Well aren’t you Mr. Buzzkill.” Fundy scoffed, although he was smiling.

“We could go to the new milkshake place that just opened!” Niki suggested.

“There we go! This is why you’re my favorite, Niki.” Wilbur smiled at her. 

“You’re the worst dad ever,” Fundy grumbled, extending his feet to kick him. Wilbur tossed his cupcake wrapper onto the coffee table and dove onto Fundy. The smaller man tried to shove him away, but he was too slow. Will’s hands rushed to his sides, and he began tickling him. 

“No! Wilbur! No!” Fundy said through his laughter, halfheartedly kicking him away. 

“Take it back. Take it back, Fundy.” 

“Fine! Fine! I take it back! I take it back!” Fundy landed a particularly good kick on Wilbur’s stomach. “I take it back!” 

“Take what back?” 

“You’re the best dad, you’re the best dad in the world, you’re better than Phil.” 

“Well, there’s no need to lie.” Wilbur laughed, but conceded, pulling away to let Fundy breathe. 

“Thank you.” Fundy gasped, grinning at him. 

“You going out in that?” Wilbur lifted an eyebrow at Fundy’s sweatpants and frayed tank top. 

“No.” Fundy stood up and ran toward his room. 

“That certainly was...something.” Niki giggled. 

“Oh, really?” Wilbur turned to her with a grin. 

“Wait, no!” She shrieked, jumping off the couch and running off. Wilbur jumped up to run after her. 

\---

“I’m telling you, one you just has to distract her, and I’ll look up the answers on Quizlet,” Tommy said, absentmindedly doodling on his worksheet. 

“Or, you could just start paying attention in class?” Tubbo suggested. 

“Huh, I wonder who distracts me?” He glared at Tubbo and Ranboo. “I doubt you guys have any idea what’s going on here either.” 

“You’re right,” Ranboo said, laying his head down on his desk. “I wish the bell would just ring already.” He whined. 

“No, you don’t. We’re running the mile outside today since it’s warm.” 

“What.” Ranboo shot up. 

“But it’s been raining all week! The track is gonna be muddy!” Tubbo pouted. 

“I know, big man. I know! I tried to tell Mr. Dallas that Phil would kill me for getting my gym shoes so dirty, but did he listen? No!” 

“Boys, I sure hope you’re talking about the worksheet!” Mrs. Allred prodded as she passed their desks. 

“Oh. Yeah. Definitely. We definitely are.” Ranboo lied through his teeth.

“Mhmm. Sure.” She raised an eyebrow at them. However, they were saved by the bell. 

“Noooooo. I don’t want to go to gym.” Tubbo complained, sliding his worksheet into his binder. Tommy and Ranboo followed suit. 

“Have fun exercising losers, I get to sit in the back of the classroom and pretend I’ve been doing the outside reading.” Tommy grinned. 

“I hate you.” Tubbo glared at him. 

“Sucks to suck.” Tommy stuck his tongue out the both of them and barely ducked out of the way as Ranboo reached to smack him in the back of the head. He paused to flip off the taller boy and then sprinted away before he could retaliate. 

\---

Techno took a sip of his milkshake, trying to hide his satisfaction from making the group laugh. He was glad Tommy was at school. The little shit would totally call him out on his faked nonchalance. 

Speak of the devil, Wilbur’s phone went off, and he dug it out of his pocket to read the text. He quickly responded and addressed the group. 

“Tommy wants me to pick him up. Phil has a Teacher’s Union meeting and he doesn’t feel like staying at the school for another 3 hours.” 

“You’ll be getting Tubbo too, then. Phil said he’d take him home.” Fundy chimed. 

“I figured.” Wilbur stood up from the cub. Fundy, Niki, and Techno followed suit. 

“I should probably head back in anyway, I’m technically on the clock right now. Thanks for the shake, Will.” Techno said. 

“Yeah, no worries.” 

“Do you want the car?” Techno asked. 

“If you don’t mind? We all walked here.” Wilbur responded. 

“It’s fine, I’ll hitch a ride home from Skeppy.” He reached into his pocket and grabbed his keys, tossing them to Wilbur. “Wait! Could one of you tell Eret that I need more hair dye?” 

“Oh, I’d be honored to,” Wilbur responded, voice dripping with smug satisfaction. Fundy reached up and smacked him. Techno had the feeling he was missing out on something. He didn’t bother questioning it, just said his goodbyes, and headed back into the building. 

He saw Skeppy talking to his friend, the one who only showed his eyes, and Techno didn’t feel like interrupting their conversation, so he made sure that his entrance was as quiet as possible. 

“But Geppy, what’s the point of being a Verge if you’re never going to use your power?” 

“Well, I’d use my power more if it wasn’t fucking useless, Bad.”

“Hey, language.” 

“Sorry. But seriously, your power has practical uses. Mine doesn’t.” 

“You guys should really be more careful. If I wasn’t a Verge too, you’d be fucked.” Techno interrupted. Skeppy and the other guy (Bad, apparently) both jumped. 

“Huh, I-you’re a  _ Verge, _ Techno?!” Skeppy asked. 

“Yeah.” Techno sped across the room and into his chair just to prove he wasn’t lying. 

“Dude, that’s so awesome!” Skeppy raved. “The whole time my favorite coworker has been a Verge too!” 

“Well, don’t go announcing it to the world.” Techno deadpanned, and got back to collapsing boxes. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> notice anything different about the chapter count? ;)
> 
> anyway! i was thinking of making like a discord server for this series, since i’ve noticed that’s something a lot of sbi fic writers do but like...i’ve been debating if it’s worth it with this series being so close to its end. two of those remaining chapters are the epilogue and the final interlude, so technically, there’s only two chapters left in this thing. would y’all join anyway, or should i hold off the discord server until my next fic?
> 
> comments and kudos are forever appreciated, feel free to leave either if you feel so inclined!


	14. I Do Not Like You

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hey, so, i’d give another explanation as to why i’m so late with this update again. but it’s really boring so i won’t
> 
> i’d be glad to talk about it in the new mapleport au discord server though!
> 
> everyone said they’d join a discord despite the fact that this series is so near it’s close, so i figured i’d make one. it’s gonna double as the discord server for my next sbi fic too
> 
> https://discord.gg/EwNBrGPMCP
> 
> chapter title is from alligator skin boots by mccafferty! be sure to read the corresponding tdifs chapter! enjoy!

“Every day I consider dropping out,” Schlatt said as they pulled up to Minx’s house. “I barely even do my fucking work, I don’t know how my grades are so high.” 

“Well, I think you should stick with it. Business is a good fit for you.” Wilbur responded, idling the car. He made grabby hands for Schlatt’s vape, and his friend handed it over. Minx hopped into the back seat as Will took his hit. 

“What the fuck? Where is Niki?” Minx said. “You said Niki would be here.” 

“I thought she would be!” Wilbur defended. 

“Well then where is she?” Minx asked. 

“Hanging out with  _ Dream, _ ” Wilbur said, not bothering to hide his distaste. 

“What the fuck?” Schlatt and Minx both exclaimed at the same time. Will let out a small laugh before he began driving again. 

“I know! He’s been all over the King family these past few days. I’m just surprised he hasn’t gone for Tubbo yet.” 

“He better not. I’ll fuckin’ shoot him if he gets anywhere near the kid.” Schlatt grumbled. 

“I think you should just shoot him anyway. He’s getting too buddy-buddy with all of them for my liking.” 

“That’s fucking weird. I wonder what he’s planning.” Minx said, also reaching for Schlatt’s vape. He audibly sighed and handed it over. 

“Why don’t you guys ever smoke your own shit?” He whined. 

“Because yours is so much better quality. Not all of us have daddy’s money to rely on.” Minx responded. 

“Well, you can get paid the exact same, for the small price of betraying your kind,” Schlatt smirked. 

“No thanks.” She scrunched up her face in distaste. “I’ll settle for stealing your shit.” 

“Good choice,” Wilbur responded. 

\---

  
  


“I was looking over your confidence intervals on the homework last night,” Phil spoke to his class. “A lot of you are forgetting to put conclusions. It’s called the  _ four- _ step process guys, not the three-step process.” He raised an eyebrow at the class. The juniors nodded, but the seniors barely paid him any mind. And they were the ones who were half-assing their work. 

Phil loved his kids, but the second semester was always a nightmare for AP Stats. Their senioritis was going to kill him. 

“If you don’t do every step I’m marking the whole question as a zero on the test, just so you guys know.” He pushed. A few more of the kids started paying attention. That would have to do. 

“Alright, so, moving on, to-” Phil was interrupted by his cell phone ringing. “So sorry class.” He apologized, his cheeks beginning to turn red as he went to his desk to grab the phone. Normally, he kept it on silent during class, but he was expecting a call. 

_ Incoming Call: Maple Mental Health Center _

“I need to take this, I’m so sorry. Just sit tight.” Phil announced to the class. They nodded and pulled out their phones. They weren’t even pretending to hide them. Phil supposed if he was breaking the no phone rule, they could too. 

“Hello?” He said, answering the phone. 

“Hi! Am I speaking to Mr. Phil Watson?” 

“You are.” 

“Wonderful! It’s Emily Evans. Apologies for not getting back to you sooner.” 

“Oh no, it’s fine, don’t worry about it,” Phil said. 

“Thank you. I checked my books, how does tomorrow at 4:30 sound? And then if things go well, I’ll schedule you every Thursday?” 

“That sounds perfect.” 

“Great! I’ll write you in then.” There was some shuffling in the background and some typing. “Are you okay with a student therapist coming into a few sessions? I’ve got a girl who’s shadowing me right now. She’s...like us if that’s something you’re worried about.” Emily skated around the word Verge. 

“As long as she is, or won’t say anything, then I don’t mind at all,” Phil responded. 

“Awesome! Alright, I’ll let you get back to your class then. See you tomorrow, Mr. Watson.” 

“Thank you, Mrs. Evans. See you then.” He hung up the phone and turned to his class. 

“Apologies about that. Now as I was saying…”

\---

“Tech. You’re not working today, right?” Phil’s voice came through the phone. 

“No,” Techno responded. 

“Perfect. I hate to ask this, but could you pick up Tommy, Tubbo, and Ranboo from auditions? I told them I’d take them all home, but I totally forgot about my therapy appointment. 

Techno almost groaned, but didn’t. He was supposed to be supporting Phil in his mental health endeavors. 

“Yeah, yeah. Tell ‘em I’ll be there in 30.” 

“Awesome, you’re the best. Love you.”   
  


“Love you too,” Techno responded, and then got up to get ready. 

As was typical of a group of high school theatre kids, all three of them were amped up. Ranboo got in the front, and Tommy and Tubbo slid into the back. Techno tried to hide his shock at Ranboo’s height. Despite hearing about the kid tons, he hadn’t actually met him yet. 

“Hey, how was it?” Techno said, checking to make sure they all had their seatbelts on before driving off. 

“It was good! I’m so excited!” Tubbo responded. Ranboo nodded in agreement. 

“That’s good. When does the cast list come out?” 

“Well, callbacks are tomorrow, and then we find out on Monday.” Tommy chimed in. “I’m not worried though. I nailed it. I’m such a big man.” 

“Ranboo? What about you?” 

“Oh, um. I did alright, I guess. I’d be fine with ensemble, really.” 

“Don’t say that, you did great!” Tubbo chimed in. 

“Oh. Thanks.” Ranboo responded. After getting Ranboo’s address, Techno let the three kids talk among themselves, nodding or humming when they wanted his input. 

Techno liked Ranboo. He reminded him a lot of himself when Techno was that age. 

“And  _ then _ , she had the audacity to tell me to just read it! I was trying! I’m in the support class for a fucking reason!” Tubbo ranted. 

“You should really tell your case carrier about that,” Ranboo advised. 

“Yeah, Big T, you-” Tommy was interrupted by Ranboo’s phone going off. 

“Sorry, sorry.” Ranboo apologized, shutting off the alarm. 

“What’s that for?” Techno asked. 

“Oh, it’s to remind me to take my meds,” Ranboo responded, fishing an orange pill bottle out of his backpack. “Can I have someone’s water?” 

“Tommy, grab him a water from the back,” Techno said. Tommy nodded and turned around, reaching into the trunk for the case of water that Wilbur insisted they keep in there. He tossed the bottle to Ranboo. 

“Big Man, what are your meds even for? I keep forgetting to ask.” Tommy said. 

“They help with my amnesia. It’s a huge problem without them.” 

“You’ve got amnesia?!” Tubbo said. 

“Yeah. I write important things down just in case, but the meds make it so it doesn’t interfere with my life too much.” Ranboo explained, dumping two tablets into his hand and taking them. 

“Amnesia. How did that happen?” Techno asked. 

“Some accident when I was a kid.” 

“What kind of accident?” Tommy asked. 

“...Funnily enough. I can’t remember.” Ranboo smiled, as Techno pulled up to his house. “Thank you so much, Mr. Techno.” 

“Oh god no. Just call me Techno.” Techno responded. 

“Got it. Thank you Techno. Goodbye Tommy! Goodbye Tubbo!” Ranboo waved to them both, before running to his door. Techno waited for Tommy to slide into the front seat, and for Ranboo to get inside safely before he drove off. 

“Can you just drop me off at Tubbo’s?” Tommy asked. 

“Gladly, I’ve got school work, I don’t want to listen to you two screaming. ” Techno responded. 

\---

“Why do you only have unicorn-shaped Kraft Dinner?” Tommy asked, peeling off the top and filling it to the line in the sink. 

“Ask Eret. They bought it, not me.” Tubbo shrugged, not glancing up from his phone. 

“Alright,” Tommy said, sticking it in the microwave. “Whatcha lookin’ at?” Tommy leaned over Tubbo’s shoulder to glance at his screen. 

“Fundy just texted me. Apparently Dream asked him to hang out tonight.” 

“What the fuck?” Tommy said. “First Eret, then Niki, and now this? What does he want with you guys? How’s he even getting your contact info?” 

“I don’t know, but I don’t trust it. He’s probably gonna ask me to hang out next.” Tubbo sighed. “It’s probably hunter shit, except they’ve all said he hasn’t been wearing his uniform.” 

“Aren’t they supposed to wear it all the time?” Tommy asked. 

“That’s what I thought too. Whatever he’s doing though, I don’t like it.” 

“I wouldn’t either. Why are your siblings even saying yes to him?” 

“Eret said he’s actually pretty cool once you look past the hunter shit and now they wanna see for themselves.” Tubbo sighed. “I wish they wouldn’t go, though. I’m terrified of the man.” 

“That is a bit shitty of them,” Tommy said, grabbing his food from the microwave. “But it’s not like you can tell them no. They’re adults.” 

“You’re right.” Tubbo sighed. “I really should just let it go. Are you putting hot sauce in your Kraft Dinner?” 

“Uh, yeah?” Tommy responded, stirring the sauce in with his food. 

“You’re fucking disgusting.” Tubbo smiled. 

“Hey, it’s good! Fuck you!” Tommy reached over to hit him. 

\---

“Mr. Watson, welcome.” Emily smiled at him as he walked in. 

“Phil is fine.” He said, taking a seat on the couch. Emily nodded. 

“This is the student who I have been working with. Cara, would you like to introduce yourself?” Emily asked. Phil switched his gaze to the student, whose long curly hair was pulled back. It was dyed every color of the rainbow. She looked oddly familiar. Phil tried to put his finger on where he had seen her before. 

“Yeah! I’m Cara Puff, but most people just call me Puffy. You can call me Puffy too if you want.” 

“Puffy. Puffy. Aren’t you Niki’s friend?” Phil asked. 

“I am!” She smiled. 

“Oh! I’m Wilbur’s dad!” 

“That’s where I knew you from!” Puffy smiled. “I knew you looked familiar.” 

“I was just thinking the same thing about you.” Phil laughed. 

“Well, it’s great that you two are already acquainted.” Emily smiled. “Now, let’s get started.” 

\---

“I’m glad you're here today Niki. It isn’t the same without you.” Minx said as they walked deeper into the forest. 

“I’m sorry!” Niki said. “Eret said that Dream was actually really nice! I got curious!” 

“Well?” Quackity asked. 

“He is! I was a bit surprised, I’ll admit.” Niki said. 

“Weird,” Wilbur commented. He felt Niki begin to slip, so he adjusted his hands on her thighs. 

“Oh! I can get down if I’m getting too heavy!” Niki said. 

“No, it’s fine, just adjusting my grip,” Wilbur said. 

“Schlatt, I think you should give me a piggyback ride too,” Quackity said, leaning against his friend’s shoulder and glancing up at him. 

“Dream on.” Schlatt laughed, playfully shoving Quackity off his shoulder. 

“I’ll give you a piggyback ride.” Minx offered. 

“Oh, hell no!” Quackity said. Minx flipped him off. 

They made it to their usual hangout spot in the forest, a little clearing with soft grass and shining sun. Wilbur set Niki down, and all five of them started setting up their picnic. 

“Niki, remind me, Schlatt and I found where that creek goes yesterday,” Wilbur said, collecting rocks to put on the corners of their blanket. “It’s super pretty, I want to show you.” 

“Okay Will!” Niki smiled at him, grabbing the cups to pass out. 

“I can’t believe you guys convinced me to go on a fucking picnic.” Schlatt rolled his eyes but took his paper plate from Quackity with no protest. 

“Niki wanted to have one, and she gets whatever she wants.” Minx deadpanned. 

“Thank you, Minx,” Niki responded. 

Wilbur smiled as he watched his friends grab their food and begin diving in. He had to hand it to Niki, it was a great idea. 

\---

“Well, I think that was a great first session!” Emily clapped her hands and smiled. “Would you like me to permanently add you to the schedule?” She asked. 

“Yeah,” Phil said, accepting the tissue box from Puffy and drying his eyes. Despite his tears, he felt lighter than he had in years. He’d have to tell Techno he was right. “This was...really nice.” He admitted. 

“That’s good to hear,” Emily said, typing on the computer. “Now, I’ve got some homework for you.” 

“Yeah?” Phil perked up. 

“Yeah. We’re going to work on some exposure therapy techniques. Sometime before next week, I want you to throw a party. And invite every Verge you know.” 

“...Why?” Phil asked. 

“You seem to have a lot of trauma surrounding the group home. Our main goal here will probably be working through that, little by little. I want you to see that you can be in a room with lots of Verges at the same time, without anything bad happening.” 

“That makes sense...I guess.” Phil said. 

“Perfect! Well, I’ll see you soon, Phil.” 

“Thank you, Emily. You too, Puffy.” 

\---

“Boys! Dinner!” Phil called upstairs. As he finished setting the table, he heard a set of feet pattering down the stairs. Tommy ran in and took his seat at the table. 

“Hi, Phil!” 

“Hi, Tommy!” Phil smiled at him. Tommy didn’t even wait for his brothers, just grabbed an artichoke leaf and dipped it into his butter. Wilbur walked in. 

“Manners, Tommy. It’s rude to eat before everyone’s at the table.” He scolded his brother but then proceeded to also grab a piece for himself. 

After a few more seconds, Techno popped up, and they all settled down to eat. 

“So, boys.” Phil started as soon as they all seemed comfortable. “I’ve got a bit of a favor to ask you.” 

\---

**Wilbur:** _ hey, you busy saturday?  _

**Minx:** _ no, why?  _

**Wilbur:** _ great! dads throwing a house party. come over?  _

“Skeppy. Sorry, is this a bad time? I can call back. Bad is with you? That’s great, I want to invite him too. Are you two busy Saturday? Oh, that sucks. What about you though, can you make it? Perfect, thanks. Yeah, see you at work tomorrow. Bye.” 

**Tommy:** _ ranboo! big man! food and games n shit on saturday. bring ur parents too if u want. phil needs some other old people to converse with.  _

“Eret! You and your siblings are free on Saturday, right? Okay, so, remember how I started therapy today?” 

“Niki! Sorry, it’s a bit dark in here. I know, I know, I suck at facetime. Oh, yeah, Puffy can totally come! I already invited Minx, don’t worry. I honestly don’t know how Phil expects to fit all these people in the house, but he did tell us to invite  _ every  _ Verge we know.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> here’s the discord link again! no pressure to join, but it’s there if you want it. comments and kudos are forever appreciated!
> 
> https://discord.gg/EwNBrGPMCP

**Author's Note:**

> comments and kudos are forever appreciated, feel free to leave either if you feel so inclined <3


End file.
